Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Adajiesther
Published on 2024-03-23 19:12:23
The sunrise over Zabarmari village was beautiful in Jere Local Government Area of Borno State, but it offered no comfort to Fatima Sani, a 22-year-old woman in labour. Her baby was coming, but the nearest health centre – her only hope – was closed. Fatima had done everything right. She attended prenatal care and knew when her baby was due. Sadly, she never expected to travel 20 kilometres for delivery, passing three closed health centres along the way.
Tragically, after a long struggle, Fatima lost what would have been her firstborn at Maryam Abacha Women and Children’s Hospital in Muna, a community along Dikwa Road, Maiduguri. While relatives mourned and cried, Fatima’s sister-in-law, Aisha Mustapha, a 28-year-old resident of Zabarmari, through tears, shared the heartbreaking news of their “journey for a safe delivery ending in a devastating stillbirth”.
Before the child’s death Fatima had earlier attended the Dalaram Old Maiduguri Primary Healthcare Centre- 15 kilometres away from her community. As of 2 p.m the PHC had only community healthcare workers on duty who couldn’t handle the childbirth. Desperate for help, Fatima had to travel another six kilometres, even as she had provided all the items requested by the PHC. “They started basic care and gave her an IV drip we bought,” Aisha explained. “But then, their shift ended—they don’t work at night. We had to go somewhere else. They recommended Maryam Abacha Hospital”.
This reporter’s visit to Zabarmari PHC confirmed what residents feared: it’s not there when people need it. The PHC, meant to serve over 15,000 people, was deserted by 1 p.m., with only security officials at the gate. Signs outside the health facility advertise childbirth services, HIV care, and more – but it’s all useless as all the doors are closed. Similarly, the Shuwari community boasts a well-built primary healthcare (PHC) centre, but operation hours remain a critical concern. Operating under the Jere LGA PHCs and managed by the Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA), the facility serves residents for less than 10 hours daily. Babagana Mustapha, a 28-year-old community health worker at the PHC, said: “Nighttime emergencies are impossible to handle, and we urge the government to address this limitation”.
Also, in Muna IDP Camp PHC, limited operating hours (8 a.m. – 3 p.m.) further complicate matters. According to 28-year-old Falmata Usman, even for childbirth, you might need to buy items, and sometimes they refer you to the Lake Chad hospital. “People go where they can find solutions,” said Falmata. Hundreds of internally displaced people (IDPs) call the Muna camp home, with over 2,000 relying on its sole health facility. While this reporter found the clinic clean and well-ventilated, two non-functional motorcycle ambulances outside painted a contrasting picture.
Nigeria has clear guidelines for its Primary Healthcare (PHC) centres. These guidelines outline staffing, equipment, medicine, and even operating hours needed to bring essential care to communities. PHCs offer more access to qualified professionals, making healthcare available to more people. According to the approved budgets of the Borno State Government, the state had invested over N7 billion in its Primary Healthcare (PHC) programme from 2020 to 2023, with significant allocation towards infrastructure and additional midwife recruitment in 2021.
In May 2023, Leadership reported that Borno State won a $1.2 million award for ‘PHC leadership’. The award, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Aliko Dangote Foundation, aims to strengthen the state’s healthcare sector. Despite the injection of funds in Borno State’s Primary Healthcare (PHC) system, access to essential drugs and services remains a significant concern in some communities.
This reporter visited 10 PHCs in Maiduguri Metropolitan Council and Jere Local Government Area, including Auno, Dalaram, Zabarmari, 707, Wulari, Nana Kashim Premier, Mairi, Shuwari, Muna, 202, and Yerwa. Sadly, some still fall short of Nigeria’s Minimum Standard for Primary Healthcare despite investments in infrastructure. The Zabarmari PHC tragically illustrates this failure. It wasn’t just Fatima who suffered from delays, unprofessionalism, lack of essential drugs, and a critical shortage of doctors. Such preventable tragedies remain far too familiar, and the World Health Organization directly links these problems to needless maternal and newborn deaths.
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