Health
WHO Organises Forum to Strengthen African Health System
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The First Regional Forum on Strengthening Health Systems for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Universal Health Coverage (UHC) opened today in Windhoek, Namibia with the theme ‘Healthy Systems, Healthy People: Making Universal Health Coverage Work for Africa.’
The forum, organized by the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (WHO AFRO) in collaboration with the government of Namibia, will initiate the WHO Africa Region’s actions towards implementation of the health SDG and Universal Health Coverage.
In particular, the forum aims to bring the technical leadership of Ministries of Health together with partners and other stakeholders to share experiences and agree on an African approach to building sustained, resilient and robust health systems.
It will also aid countries to create a set of common measurable actions needed to develop effective health systems across the region in order to propel them towards attaining Universal Health Coverage and achieving the SDGs.
“We must see health as a prerequisite, a determinant and an outcome of all the SDGs, and not merely the ‘health goal’,” Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, said at the opening of the Forum, calling on governments to provide the necessary stewardship in order to reach UHC and SDG targets.
In September 2015, the UN General Assembly adopted the SDGs, of which Goal 3 addresses health, underpinned by a target on UHC.
The health goal, among others, addresses the unfinished Millennium Development Goals (MDG) agenda as well as incorporates emerging issues such as non-communicable diseases, injury prevention and environmental health.
The SDGs therefore require effective health systems in countries, with services that are designed and distributed towards achieving UHC – leaving no-one behind.
Making health coverage universal requires ensuring that everyone is able to access health services without economic, cultural, social, geographic or system-related barriers. It is only when inequities of systems such as unavailability of essential medicines, shortage of human power and delays due to inefficient logistics are addressed – and systems enabled to overcome these challenges – that the SDGs can be achieved and Universal Health Coverage attained.
Speaking on behalf of the Prime Minister of Namibia, and expressing her country’s determination to pursue the SDGs for the betterment of the lives of the Namibian people, Laura McLeod Katjirua, Governer of Khomas Region, said, “We are expecting that this forum, which is the first of its kind in Africa, will help expedite the efforts of countries in the Region towards Universal Health Coverage and achievement of SDGs. Hence, strengthening the health systems is an indispensable prerequisite to realize our goal of a healthy nation.”
Health is at the core of building wealthy and secure nations, and health systems are at the core of all efforts to ensure health for the people of the African Region. Hence, countries need resilient and robust health systems in order to deliver on their health agenda, mitigate dangers to health, lives and livelihoods caused by emergencies and disease outbreaks, and eventually meet the targets of the SDGs and attain universal health coverage.
Dr Moeti noted, “Investments in health systems are an important insurance for securing societies and their development,” calling for a high level political commitment with a clear vision of health in the SDGs to be at the heart of countries’ efforts. She further underscored the need to develop “mechanisms to ensure in-depth inter-sectoral engagement and thereby to reinforce multi-stakeholder commitments and collaboration.” As expressed by the Regional Director, involving communities, harnessing modern technologies and intensifying research and gathering and monitoring of data is also key to ownership, successful implementation and sustainability of health programs leading towards the achievement of the SDGs.
WHO AFRO will intensify its health advocacy efforts across governments to ensure that the SDGs and Universal Health Coverage remain at the forefront of political and development agendas. It will also continue to create an evidence base to support the development and implementation of SDG-oriented national policies, strategies and plans as well as people-centred health services. It will further intensify its health system strengthening efforts to ensure both country and global public health security and resilience.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) says the number of Nigerians enrolled in health insurance has risen to more than 22 million.
The Director-General of NHIA, Mr Kelechi Ohiri, said this resulted from the implementation of the mandatory health insurance, which has gained momentum nationwide.
He said this on Wednesday at the Annual General Meeting of the Nigerian Association of Insurance and Pension Editors (NAIPE) in Lagos.
Mr Ohiri said enrolment had increased to 22.03 million, representing a 35 per cent year-on-year growth, attributing this to stronger collaboration with state social health insurance agencies, ministries, departments and agencies, organised labour, employers, the private sector, and the gradual implementation of the mandatory health insurance provisions of the NHIA Act.
He said that the country had moved beyond policy formulation to delivering measurable improvements in healthcare access, service quality and consumer protection in line with the federal government’s health sector reform agenda.
According to him, Nigeria already has the necessary policies and legislation to achieve Universal Health Coverage, positing that the key challenge was effective implementation.
“The decisive variable is now implementation- consistent, rigorous and accountable execution that converts political commitment into healthcare access for real Nigerians,” he said.
Mr Ohiri said that the transition from the former National Health Insurance Scheme to the NHIA had strengthened regulation, consumer protection, accountability and strategic purchasing, while providing the legal and operational framework for achieving Universal Health Coverage.
He added that improving the experience of enrollees remained central to the Authority’s reform agenda.
According to him, NHIA has strengthened its complaints management system, introduced faster resolution timelines, and intensified compliance monitoring of Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) and healthcare providers.
He further added that NHIA had sanctioned facilities that failed to meet the required standards, adding that his organisation had resolved 3,878 complaints, representing an 87 per cent resolution rate, while 95 per cent of the cases were concluded within prescribed timelines.
Mr Ohiri noted that more than N14.2 million had been refunded to enrollees, while non-compliant healthcare facilities had been sanctioned.
He said NHIA had also introduced service standards, including a one-hour treatment commencement target for enrollees requiring urgent care, to improve access to timely and quality healthcare services.
The NHIA boss further disclosed that capitation payments to healthcare providers had been increased by 93 per cent.
He said fee-for-service reimbursements rose by 378 per cent to enable providers to invest more in personnel, equipment and infrastructure.
According to him, 7,592 healthcare facilities have been assessed under the SafeCare quality framework as part of efforts to institutionalise continuous quality improvement across the country.
Mr Ohiri also highlighted interventions targeted at vulnerable groups, including support for more than 48,500 pregnant women, expanded maternal and newborn healthcare services, the Vulnerable Group Fund, and improved access to healthcare for pensioners and retirees.
He said Universal Health Coverage could only be achieved if every Nigerian, regardless of income or location, had access to quality healthcare services.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The new one-hour authorisation response time ultimatum policy introduced by the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has received the full backing of SUNU Health Nigeria Limited.
This policy was introduced by the agency to ensure enrollees get prompt approval codes to access care.
Healthcare service providers have been urged to report any Health Maintenance Organisation (HMO) that violates this initiative through an email, with the HMO in copy and a timestamp attached as evidence of the request. They may proceed to offer services to enrollees thereafter.
Speaking at the company’s second-quarter Providers’ Forum for the Lagos-Ogun region in Lagos recently, the chief executive of SUNU Health, Dr Moyosore Olomola, expressed optimism that this policy would improve healthcare delivery in the country, especially for enrollees, who crave quality service.
At the event themed Improving Quality and Access to Care Through Stronger Provider Network, and held at the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) in Yaba, Lagos, Mr Olomola reaffirmed the HMO’s commitment to operating within legal and operational frameworks to guarantee adequate care for enrollees.
“Access to care and quality of care remain key priorities in our healthcare systems. We know quite well that deliberate collaboration, strategic partnerships, and a shared commitment to excellence are required to achieve these priorities.
“A strong provider network is doubtless the backbone of any effective healthcare system. It ensures that our mutual enrollees receive the right care, at the right time, in the right place, and at the right price,” Mr Olomola, represented at the programme by the organisation’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Dr Faith Nwachi, stated.
He further assured that SUNU Health would strictly adhere to the one-hour authorisation limit, stressing that this aligns seamlessly with one of the organisation’s core values—promptness and its corporate slogan, Humanity is the centre of our initiatives.
In a bid to further improve access and quality of care, SUNU Health also demonstrated its new operational software and Mobile app, aptly named SUNU Legacy.
Also speaking at the event, the NHIA Lagos State Coordinator (Ikeja), Dr Bethuel-Kasimu Abraham, noted that the forum’s expected outcome is to significantly reduce delays in accessing medical care.
Other key expectations include ensuring continuity of care, improving patient outcomes, and strengthening accountability among HMOs.
Addressing specific pain points faced by enrollees, the NHIA Ogun State Coordinator, Mr Dare Adefeso, acknowledged that the agency had received complaints regarding out-of-stock drugs and the discrimination of enrollees by certain providers.
He affirmed that the NHIA is actively addressing these issues, stressing that moving forward, every facility must ensure enrollees are properly catered to regardless of their status, provided they have an active health insurance plan.
Corroborating the long-standing legacy of SUNU Health, the Ogun State Director of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mrs Aishat Tiamiyu, shared that her agency is responsible for public information dissemination and has been enrolled with SUNU Health for over 25 years.
Commending the HMO’s stellar service over two decades, she called for the immediate enrollment of new NOA staff into the scheme.
The Providers’ Forum remains one of the strategic channels employed by SUNU Health to consistently engage healthcare providers, understand their operational challenges, introduce new software updates, and solidify partnerships aimed at fostering premium healthcare delivery across Nigeria.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has announced the recall of a sexual enhancement product known as WAP Sensual Enhancement Capsules.
In a statement on Monday, the Nigerian agency disclosed that the recall is due to “undeclared pharmaceutical ingredients” in the product, whose country of origin is unknown, but is marketed and distributed online in the US through eBay.
It was emphasised that the recall is being “voluntarily” made by the manufacturer, Best Supplements Best Prices Company.
The detection of the undeclared pharmaceutical ingredients was made by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Laboratory analysis by the US FDA revealed that the product contained undeclared sildenafil, tadalafil, and flibanserin, which were not mentioned on the product label. Such substances may include phosphodiesterase type-5 (PDE-5) inhibitors or related compounds commonly used for the treatment of erectile dysfunction, the statement by NAFDAC stated.
Sildenafil and tadalafil are ingredients in FDA-approved prescription drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction.
It was noted that these undeclared ingredients may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs, such as nitroglycerin, and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels. Consumers with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease often take nitrates.
Flibanserin is the active ingredient in an FDA-approved prescription drug used to treat low sexual desire in women. Flibanserin can cause drowsiness, sedation, dangerously low blood pressure, and fainting, especially when combined with alcohol.
Consumers have been encouraged to report compromised products (medicines or medical devices) to the nearest NAFDAC office, call 0800-162-3322, or send an email to sf******@********ov.ng.
