12 years and we are still writing health

The survival of this column also signifies the relative peace and health on both the part of the writer and the editors. It is also a marker for a healthy working relationship between me and the management of Daily Trust Newspaper. And most importantly it is also a marker about the survival and endurance of […]

The survival of this column also signifies the relative peace and health on both the part of the writer and the editors. It is also a marker for a healthy working relationship between me and the management of Daily Trust Newspaper. And most importantly it is also a marker about the survival and endurance of Daily Trust as one of the respected and influential newspapers in Nigeria.
This column advocates to policy makers, senior government officials, development partners and civil society organisations for better health systems and improved quality of care through the use of evidence to influence decision making and planning. The last couple of years, I have been privileged to attend many local, continental and international meetings which provided the opportunity to access strategic reports and information which had tremendously enriched what I usually published here.
We are marking our 12 years anniversary when Nigeria is about to enter its election mode to elect governors and a president who will lead us for another 4 years. This signifies that we have to intensify our advocacy and sensitization to our ‘would be leaders’ and their cronies to focus on providing quality care to Nigerians.
The election mode and the declaration that Nigeria has become the largest economy in Africa create both opportunities as well as challenges for the country.  Currently, an insufficient amount of funds is allocated to the health sector and even the meagre resources isn’t utilised efficiently.  
The health sector this year is at its lowest moment with the Federal Government of Nigeria sacking 16,000 resident doctors and suspending residency training not too long ago although they have been reinstated, as well as the on-going fierce battle of supremacy among health workers’ unions for power and recognition, leaving the “patient” helpless and frustrated.
We are now less than 500 days to the attainment of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), serious calls and fast actions are required to address the shortfalls in investment in maternal, newborn and child health. It is still fresh in our minds that the Nigerian government specifically committed to;
1.      Reduce Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) from what it was previously to about 250/100,000 by September 2015.
2. Achieving the contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) of 36 % by 2018. Achieving this goal will mean averting at least 31,000 maternal deaths.
3. Ensuring the availability of Reproductive Health Commodities including lifesaving drugs for women and newborn in our secondary and primary health care facilities.
4. Passage into law the long awaited national health care bill which will boost financial commitment and allocation to primary health care and insurance scheme leading to improved universal coverage.
The 2013 National Demographic Health Survey (NDHS) had scored Nigeria poorly in many health indicators. Our MMR is put at 576 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births which wasn’t significantly different from the ratio reported in the 2008 NDHS of 545/100,000. It has even gone up rather than come down. WHO’s 2013 published maternal death estimates also corroborated the 2013 NDHS as it reported Nigeria’s MMR as 560/100,000. The antenatal coverage for at least one visit was put at 60.6% and for four or more visits was put at 51.5%. These percentages signify that almost half of the women population were disenfranchised and it raises the question of equity and coverage in health care. The % of births attended by skilled health personnel was put at 38.1%, this is very poor and a red card for Nigeria being the largest economy in Africa.
We have to sustain the voice and raise critical questions to promote accountability in the health sector. I am using this anniversary to call our leaders to do more because of the following reasons;
1. Nigeria is one of the 10 worst places to be a mother, and has the second highest number of newborn deaths worldwide.
2.  One woman out of every 41 Nigerians faces a lifetime risk of death in childbirth. This is in contrast to Ethiopia, where one woman out of 67 faces such a risk.
3. Currently, only 15% of Nigerians married or in-union aged 15-49 use any modern method of contraception. These numbers are shockingly low, and in stark contrast to Ethiopia where the rate is 27%. In Bangladesh 52% of women married or in-union aged 15-49 are using modern methods of contraception.
4.      The estimated number of maternal deaths for 2013 is 40,000.
In conclusion, it is another time to sincerely thank the management of Daily Trust, including its editors, for allowing me write on this page and pray for the paper’s sustainability, growth, expansion and development.
Dr Aminu Magashi is the Publisher of Health Reporters ( [email protected])