The Department of Health and Provincial Health Authority are urged to prioritise all health programs as many are also dying and getting sick from preventable diseases.
Deputy Controller of the National Pandemic Response, Dr Esorom Daoni urged health authorities NDOH and PHA’s to not neglect routine health programs of other preventable diseases over COVID-19.
He told the health authorities that it is evident of the surge in most provinces and the natural reaction would be to redirect resources and manpower to cover COVID cases.
However, his concern was that PHAs should also focus on priority programs like the Malaria program, Maternal Child Health, Expanded Programme for Immunisation (EPI), Tuberculosis, HIV and Non-Communicable Diseases.
Dr Daoni raised concerns of a trend resulting in an increasing number of people dying from diseases other than COVID. Therefore, PHAs, hospitals, health workers and health facilities are encouraged to make sure they make these programs a priority to avoid more deaths not just from COVID but preventable diseases as well.
The pandemic presents the opportunity of strengthening a basic health system and with the focus left on the pandemics emergency; NDOH and PHA must focus on:
- Governance, leadership and management
- Service delivery
- Health - infrastructure, financing, information and workforce.
Dr Daoni believes that if focus were to be given to building on these health systems, this in turn will help us rise above the pandemic with a good health system.