WE’RE PROVIDING QUALITY HEALTHCARE – GOV OBIANO

NGOZI OBILERI

Governor Willie Obiano has restated his administration’s commitment to providing quality health care delivery to Ndi Anambra through the introduction of policies and reforms that will be beneficial to all.

Governor Obiano stated this during the grand opening of Synapse Oak Mental Health facility in Awka.

The event was attended by medical experts, traditional rulers and the academia

Declaring the facility officially open, Governor Obiano represented by the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Josephat Akabuike said that one of the best ways to achieve sustainability is to maintain a steady economy, adequate security which he said were the back bone of development of the state as provided by the Obiano administration.

While appreciating the Medical Director of the facility Dr. Vincent Udenze for bringing the facility home, the Governor said it was in line with the effort towards freeing the state of mentally deranged persons and encouraged him to enter into partnership with the government in order to expand the facility and bring it closer to the people.

He explained that the state as part of the effort to tackle the problem of finances for the citizenry has introduced Primary Health Care Development Agency and has passed into law Universal Health Insurance Scheme where wealthy individuals sponsor medical services for the less privileged by paying insignificant amounts of money on monthly basis.

Earlier in an opening speech, the immediate past Commissioner for Health, Dr. Lawrence Ikeakor who chaired the event regretted that mental health is a major problem in Nigeria where the country has only three thousand one hundred and five trained health officials in charge of mental health a reason he pointed out, one hundred mental health persons are cared for by only eleven officials.

On his part, the Vice Chancellor Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka Professor Joseph Ahaneku represented by Professor Richard Uwakwe, a Professor of Psychatrics, UNIZIK noted that there were over four hundred different cases of mental challenges but unfortunately, people believe that every mental disorder is madness.

The traditional ruler of Awka, Obi Gibson Nwosu called on government to ensure that those treated of any mental case were provided with skills noting that stigmatization is a serious threat to quick recovery and assimilation of the victims.

Others who spoke at the event included the Controller of Nigerian Prison Service Anambra State, Mr. Emma Nwakeze and the traditional Prime Minister of Ogidi Chief Ifeanyi Udokwu said that the rate at which mental cases increased among young men was of utmost worry, adding that the intake of hard drugs and depression were the major causes of mental disorder.

The Medical Director of the facility Dr. Udenze explained that the move was born out of the desire to answer the Aku luo Uno clarion call by Governor Obiano saying that the facility was also to immortalise their father, late Cheif Vincent Udenze, who was a Psychatric nurse and who expanded nursing services in the South East.

He announced that the management will give free consultation and treatment to patients every second and fourth Friday of the month especially the less privileged ones.