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By Sarah NEGEDU
The fight to check infant mortality rate in the Federal Capital Territory received a boost recently, when the FCT Administration took delivery of high tech comprehensive newborn equipment donated by the United States Agency for International Development, USAID.
The medical equipment made up of airway pressure machine, incubators, among others, the FCTA said will help meet some of the critical needs of newborns in Abuja and environs.
The development partner, USAID, through its implementing partners, donated the equipment to Asokoro District and Nyanya General Hospitals to help save the lives of sick and newborns.
Receiving the state-of-the-arts facilities at a brief handover ceremony at Asokoro Hospital, Abuja, the Director General, FCT Hospitals Management Board, Dr. Mohammed Kawu, said the equipment will go a long way in reducing neonatal morbidity and mortality in hospitals across the FCT and the country in general.
He said, although the benefiting hospitals already have similar equipment for managing neurones before now, but we appreciate this support a lot which are really modern high tech equipment from USAID.
“There are other support that the FCTA provides through its procurement and budgetary provisions and Internally Generated Revenue, IGR, sources.”
Also speaking, the Chief Medical Director, Asokoro Hospital, Dr. Afiomah Uche, said the medical equipment will assist the health personnel to ensure accelerated reduction of new born and prenatal mortal and morbidity.
The CMD added that the donations has assisted to boost the capacity of the facility, to give care to babies less than 30 days delivered to mothers within and outside the hospital.
According to her, the donation has already increases the hospital’s bed space to twelve beds, and is adding value to the facility that serves as a regional reference centre, which gets admissions from outside FCC and neighbouring states, in oder to get the care at an affordable cost.
“We have received equipment for treatment of jaundice, we have warmers to keep babies warm; syringe pumps, and deliver drugs to them; and other equipment in order to ensure that babies especially the very small and sick ones survive and are able to do well in life.
“The FCTA employes highly trained personnel who have been in neonatal unit, and they have neonatal capacity for many years, but receiving these equipment, we also received training, in order to effectively use and maintain them.
“We have them already, but the number was increased, so we are now able to ensure more families are going benefit from healthcare delivery in this facility.
Similarly, Chief Medical Director, Nyanya District Hospital, Dr. Hadiza Bage, said with the donations presents better opportunities for children of the poor to access the best healthcare services.
She said, “The kind of donations made to Asokoro District Hospital were also given to Nyanya General Hospital, so the poorest of the poor will get quality services.”
Ealier, in his remarks, Director, USAID Health Population and Nutrition Office, Paul McDermott said specialized equipment and technology are essential for
the survival of small and sick newborns.
McDermott added that specialised equipment, such as continuous positive airway pressure machines
and incubators – are often needed to support breathing and regulate an infant’s temperature.
He disclosed that scaled up training within FCT will be supported by USAID’S Integrated Health program, as part of USAID implementing partners’ collaborative effort.
“Today, USAID through its Momentum Country Global Leadership, Quality of Care, MCGL QoC, activity in partnership with NEST360 is providing some specialized equipment to FCTA to help end preventable newborn deaths and improve the quality of care for mothers and children in Nigeria.
“To help reduce the knowledge gap and increase the capacity of health providers to maintain
specialized medical equipment in Nigeria, USAID MCGL QOC, NEST 360, in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Health, trained biomedical engineers and technicians, BMET.
“This included two personnel from each of the 36 states and the FCT on the use and maintenance of this
equipment. In turn, this initial cadre of technicians will train other BMETs in their respective
states.
“l also acknowledge the productive collaboration with the teams of Asokoro and Nyanya hospitals which has led us here to a successful handover”, he said.
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