THE Jigawa State Government has announced that patients suffering from hypertension, diabetes, and sickle cell disease will receive free healthcare services across the state.
A statement by the Commissioner for Information, Youth, Sports, and Culture, Sagir Musa, on Friday, August 9, noted that the State Executive Council, on Thursday, August 8, approved the extension of the state’s free maternal, neonatal, and child healthcare programme to cover people with hypertension, diabetes, and sickle cell in all government-owned hospitals across the 27 local government areas.
According to the World Health Organisation, about 422 million people worldwide have diabetes – a chronic, metabolic disease characterised by elevated levels of blood glucose (or blood sugar), which leads over time to serious damage to the heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys and nerves.
The WHO estimates the prevalence of diabetes in Nigeria to be 4.3 per cent and the prevalence is largely attributed to the lifestyle changes caused by urbanisation and its consequences; industries producing unhealthy diets including sugar-sweetened drinks, lack of exercise, tobacco use and harmful use of alcohol.
While hypertension is the most common cardiovascular disease (CVD) in Nigeria, found in 86.4 per cent of CVD patients and prevalent in an estimated 29–38 per cent of adult Nigerians, the country is also believed to be the most sickle cell endemic in sub-Saharan Africa, with between two and three per cent of the nation’s population affected.
Sickle cell disorder is an inherited haemoglobin disorder comprising sickle cell anaemia (Hb SS) and some less prevalent but related conditions such as sickle haemoglobin C disorder (Hb SC) and sickle beta thalassaemia (Hb SBthal).
In its efforts to provide free healthcare for sickle cell, diabetes and hypertension patients, the commissioner explained that the council approved the disbursement of N179.2 million as direct facility financing to the accredited primary health centres (PHCs) in the state.
He stated that the council also approved the establishment of 17 additional PHCs across the 281 political wards in the state for the first and second quarters of 2024, under the National Primary Health Care Development Agency.
According to him, N69.1 million was approved for the payment of monthly stipends for 79 midwives and community influencers, promoters, and services (CHIPS) agents.
He further mentioned that a work plan for the implementation of immunisation plus and malaria progress by accelerating coverage and transforming services project presented by the Ministry of Health was also approved.
“The IMPACT Project is supported by World Bank with a total amount of N1.2 billion only in the work plan for the year 2024 for Jigawa for the revitalisation of 161 primary healthcare centres in the state,” Musa said.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: [email protected]. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M