The Manager, Delta State Drug Revolving Fund(DRF), Pharm. Ochuko Ekpagha said that the State Drug Revolving Fund has continued to support 337 Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) across the State with drugs for effective healthcare service delivery.
Ekpagha made the disclosure in his office in Asaba when the State Chairman of Civil Society Organization on Malaria Control, Immunization and Nutrition (ACOMIN) , Pastor Gregory Sifo, accompanied by the State Program Officer of ACOMIN, Sir Austin Uwede paid him advocacy visit.
He expressed his readiness to collaborate with relevant organizations that would impact the healthcare system, adding that his priority was to ensure that drugs are available in healthcare facilities and government hospitals.
Ekpagha, who said that the quantity of drugs supplied to various healthcare centres and public hospitals are based on their requisitions, implored PHCs to ensure that their requisitions are focused on drugs for the primary issues such as for the treatment of malaria and other treatments.
While urging PHCs to also request for the supply of drugs and commodities that would last for the minimum of three months provided they have not expired rather than asking for small quantity that would finish in few weeks because of the cost of transporting the drugs to the PHCs, Ekpagha appealed to the Delta State Government to come to the need of his office with the provision of more delivering vehicles.
Earlier in their separate remarks, the State Chairman of ACOMIN, Pastor Gregory Sifo and the State Program Officer of ACOMIN, Sir Austin Uwede told the DRF manager that ACOMIN was saddled with the responsibility of the implementation of free malaria, free TB and free HIV and testing and have been implementing in 13 States with Delta State inclusive.
They stated that their organization mainly focuses on accountability and advocacy while their partners including the Society for Family Health and the Management Science for Health handle mobilization and supply of commodities respectively to the healthcare facilities.
Sifo and Uwede explained that they usually interface with community leaders, pregnant women and in most cases representatives of the facilities to introduce the project to them and enlighten them on the need to take ownership of their healthcare centres and support towards improving service delivery as government cannot do it alone.
At the Community -Driven Development Social Implementation Unit (CDDSIU) of Delta Care Project, the ACOMIN team commended the Project Director, Mrs. Akohneoareho Asanimo Orubu and her staff do carrying out renovation work on healthcare facilities in the communities where their project was intervening.
They listed the ten local government areas that ACOMIN was currently implementing to include Oshimili North, Isoko North, Isoko South , Aniocha North , Ndokwa East, Ndokwa West and Uwvie among few others.
Speaking further, Sifo and Uwede said that ACOMIN usually visits healthcare centres and communities and organize focused group discussions meeting to introduce the project to the people for them to contribute their quota towards the upliftment of tht facilities.
They informed the CDDSIU Project Director that they were told by Ogbedibo community during one of their advocacy visits that they had written to CDDSIU to support them in carrying out renovation work on their healthcare centre , just as the duo appealed to CDDSIU to consider the community whenever they have more funds for projects implementation.
Responding, Mrs. Orubu said that Ogbedibo community actually expressed interest and Participatory Rural Appraisal was conducted in the community, emphasizing that the community identified their priority project and would be considered for renovation work when more funds are available.
Orubu appreciated ACOMIN for the visit, describing it as a welcome development and reiterated her unwavering determination to deliver effectively on their assignments.
By Magnus Emuji
