By Chioma Umeha
The Ogun State government in collaboration with
the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, alongside with Development
Partners on health has organised a training programme on District Health
Information Technology for Local Immunization Officers (LIOs) in the state in
order to ensure adequate collation of data on public health sector.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Babatunde
Ipaye while speaking at the venue of the training in Ijebu-Ode Area of the
State, urged the participants drawn from 20 Local Government Councils and 37
LCDAs,across the State to take advantage of the training to ensure optimal
performance in their local council areas.
Dr. Ipaye, according to his media aide, Mr. Ismail
Sokunbi, explained that the primary objective of the programme was to
facilitate quality routine immunization data collection in public health
centres across the State, saying that the monitoring and evaluation department
in each Local Government Area would be given a laptop computer to replace the
traditional methods.
“The idea of the Laptop computers was initiated
because it is mobile and can be used for a while when there is power outage”.
He added.
Ipaye assured that the health ministry would not
compromise standards in ensuring that adequate data on health were kept in the
State, advising all beneficiaries of the training to make the best use of the
progamme for more efficiency in the area of health care delivery at the grassroots.
Also speaking, the State Coordinator, National
Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Mr. Adesina Adelakun,
disclosed that Ogun was one of 18 States selected for implementation of the
initiative, saying the programme would make data on immunization more
accessible at the local government level.
In their good will messages, representatives of
the development partners, Mr. Saliuh Nasir of the European Union Support to
Immunization Governance in Nigeria as well as Mr. Kunle Akerele of African Field
Epidemiology Network, pledged to assist in the delivery of efficient health
care services to the people.
Speaking on behalf of the participants, the
Chairman, Local Immunization Officers in the State, Rev. Cannon Adedeji
Adepena, assured that they would make effective use of the equipment given them
for efficient and reliable health information data.
