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| Panel of discussants Left to right: Major Gen. O. A Ogunbiyi (rtd) keynote speaker, Brig. Gen. A Dada, Chief Medical Director 68NARHY, Maj. Gen. Ameh (rtd) and Brig Gen IU Babangida (rtd). Inset: Maj Gen Udoh General Officer Commandinding 81 Division Nigerian Army (lt) |
....Says It Wants To Meet Quality Healthcare
Demands, Emergencies
Chioma Umeha
In view of growing demand on human and material
resources on the Nigerian Army(NA) to meet security challenges has embarked, NA
has commenced restructuring and reequipping of its medical corps facilities to
guarantee availability of world-class care for the safety of the lives of
troops and effectively handle emergencies.
Lt. Gen. Tukur Burutai, the Chief of Army Staff,
revealed this during the opening ceremony of its 2018 Nigerian Army Medical
Corps Training Week, with the theme: “Enhancing Quality Healthcare in Nigerian
Army Medical Corps Facilities.”
Burutai noted that the safety of the lives of
troops is paramount, especially when they need to be admitted in the hospitals
for treatment
He disclosed the army has already started the
refurbishing of facilities, especially in the tertiary hospitals.
The Chief of Army Staff also announced that the
hospitals can now boast of diagnostic equipment like a mammogram, CT scan, MRI
and others as well as ultramodern theatre facilities for the management of surgical
cases.
Represented by Maj.-Gen. Enebong Udoh, the General
Officer Commanding (GOC) 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, he said the move was
also to reduce medical tourism.
Burutai expressed optimism that the training week,
said the training week was to reposition the Nigerian Army Medical Corps to
deliver health care services in a more robust manner.
“NA is faced with security challenges that have
put a high demand on human and material resources. To surmount these challenges
requires that medical professionals should be well-trained and competent. All
efforts, therefore, be geared at reducing the effects of sicknesses and
injuries in the battlefield through an efficient causality management system.
He said in view of the huge investment being made
to upgrade the facilities, medical personnel are expected to be capable of
handling newer sophisticated equipment and maintain them.
“I expect a more positive attitude in your care of
patients and facilities placed at your disposal. It is for this reason that I
appointed a monitoring and evaluation team to see that standards are maintained
in the hospitals. I expect that you will make use of his findings to improve
the quality of care in your facilities.”
Giving his welcome address, Maj. Gen. Ikechukwu
Okeke, the Corps Commander Medical, NAMC, who bemoaned the shortage of medical
personnel disclosed that all categories of staff of various specialities have
been called upon to perform trauma care or nursing roles due to the exigencies
of duties.
Noting that every personnel privileged to wear the
maroon beret must have basic combat casualty care training; he said they have
identified some gaps in the knowledge and training of NAMC personnel which has
been seen not only in combat causality care, but also the quality of care in NA
medical facilities.
“There is a need to reappraise what we are doing
whether right or wrong and learn better ways of doing them. Basic issues such
as infrastructure/equipment maintenance, emergency preparedness, clinical
process and attitude to work are sometimes bizarrely neglected.”
Okeke said that following insufficient number of
doctors and nurses, there is need for more personnel to be trained to provide
care especially in the pre-hospital setting in the field.
“As part of my effort to enhance the quality of
care in NAMC facilities, a new directorate has been established at the
headquarters in line with NA Order of battle, ORBAT 2016.
“The Corps is in the final stages of producing the
NA medical doctrine as a guide to how we should do things and the mental health
policy is almost ready for publication. All these are aimed at putting the
corps in a better position to provide quality care.”
Maj. Gen OA Ogunbiyi, in his lecture, “Enhancing
Quality Healthcare in Nigerian Army medical Corps Facilities,” identified poor
infrastructure, skilled manpower, funding, the attitude of healthcare providers
and training as challenges facing NAMC.
Ogunbiyi recommended that the Army Head Quarters,
AHQ, should sustain the annual recruitment of skilled manpower via a special
commissioning scheme.
“AHQ in conjunction with Headquarter NAMC should
come up with a realistic annual medical budget for the NA based on contemporary
challenges, improve and sustain the drug supply chain and enhance the quality
of healthcare delivery.”
While insisting that provision of qualitative and
accessible healthcare services to members of the armed forces was of paramount
importance to the Federal government, he called for attitudinal among NAMC
healthcare providers and across all ranks.
