Winifred Bosa .

Key players in the Nigerian health sector have recently at the Health Writers Association Of Nigeria ( HEWAN)’s 7th annual symposium in Lagos , explored the interface between health and financing and as such emphasised that the grim health situation in the country was as result of crisis in healthcare financing .

The symposium which took place at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), also provided insight into the current health realities of Nigeria , its health challenges and also shed light on effective approaches to reshaping the health system which blights the lives of millions.

Topics addressed at the symposium were , “Mental Health in A Recessed Economy”, by the Acting Medical Director, Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, Dr. Richard Adebayo , “Disease Outbreaks: The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Experience”, by the CEO, NCDC, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu ,  “The Burden of HIV/AIDS in Nigeria” presented by Director General, NACA, Dr. Sani Aliyu and ” The Role of the Media in Advocating for Increase in Health Sector “.

The Chief Medical Director of  Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Prof. Chris Bode, who is the chief host of the event expressed worry over the poor state of  healthcare financing in the country  and urged health journalists to focus more on reporting health financing in the country.

Lamenting , Prof Bode wished that many of the patients could safely foot their hospital bills , “I wish there will be somebody paying the bill. I met a man yesterday. He has already acquired a bill of millions of Naira because his son is (on admission) and he’s not out of the wood yet. They cannot afford to pay but does that make him less worthy of receiving the best treatment in Nigeria because he could not pay? I had to tell him ‘look, we’ll see what we can do.’ We’ll see how we would quietly assist him to say ‘don’t pay the bill.’ We’ll see how this child will get well without the man crippling his whole family.”

He encouraged HEWAN to keep up the momentum adding  “I wish you could write more about health care financing. Someone must pay the bill – be it government or health insurance. Out-of-pocket payment is not what we should be talking about. Each one of us insures our cars yet, we don’t have accidents in three years. But in your family, somebody goes to the hospital within three months yet, we don’t have any insurance – even when we have it, does it work, does it meet us at the point when we need it?

Honouring Health Champions

At the event , the immediate past President of HEWAN, Mr. Azoma Chikwe, presented certificates of recognition to Prof. Chris Bode, the Chief Medical Director of LUTH and his counterpart at LASUTH, Prof. Wale Oke for their unalloyed  support to the association . Mr Azoma said that the two institutions of the awardee have remained consistent in offering assistance to HEWAN thereby he urged other government and private bodies to emulate this gesture.

Media /Budget Advocacy

In her presentation , the program officer of Health Reform Foundation (HEFRON)/( PACFaH) the Partnership for Advocacy in Child and Family Health , Aanu’ Rotimi , noted that health journalists are critical stakeholders in national development hence advocating for improved health outcomes is a role they must play .

However , she enumerated  health financing issues not widely covered by the media, limited investigation on health sector funding  , limited demand in accountability over the years, and so on as challenges before health reporters.

Therefore she urged the media to sensitize policy makers and other decision makers on the importance of domestic financing for health

Focus on Mental Health

In this context ,Dr. Stephen Olamide Oluwaniyi of Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba , disclosed that even before the onset of recession in Nigeria the gathering that the prevalence of mental illness was reported at 20% , ratio of psychiatrists to population was 1:1,400,000 coupled with an out-dated Mental health policy.

And since the onset of the current recession , he observed that the situation is worse , “For example, at FNPH, Yaba, we recorded a 59 per cent increase new  cases in 2016 compared with 2015. About 3.3% of the health budget of the Federal government goes to mental health, with over 90% of this going to mental hospitals. The cost of antipsychotic medication for a day was N42 (7% of the minimum wage of N18,000) and majority still paid out of pocket. There are no social programmes specifically targeting the needs of people with mental illness, and a large number are left to their fate.”

Listing optimism , active coping skills ,Physical health  social support networks,as components of resilience of mental health ,  Dr Olamide mentioned other measures as,  appropriate ante natal care,  healthy parenting styles, healthy lifestyles , seeking appropriate treatment , positive childhood experiences as ways of protecting future generations from manifesting the negative effects of current recession .

HIV/AIDs: 90-90-90 Target

Delivering on behalf of Dr Sani Aliyu , Director General , National Agency for the Control of Aids , Dr Funke Oki , Deputy Director Program Co-ordinator  Department who noted that AIDS is the 2nd leading cause of deaths among adolescents in Nigeria and as such , states must take care of the HIV/AIDs programs for sustainability and to achieve 90-90-90 goals of UNAIDs.

And to achieve these goals , Dr Oki said we have to prevent new infections especially among adolescents and young people , identify all those that are currently infected and place them on ART and ensure that those on ART continue their medication to avoid treatment failure.