High Rate Of Infant Mortality Responsible For Short Life Expectancy – Ex Health Minister

By;  VITALIS UGOH, Calabar
Former Minister of Health, Prof.  Adenike Grange, has identified high infant and maternal mortality rate as responsible for short life expectancy.
This she said “is one of the major challenges facing the country’s  healthcare delivery system”.
Grange made this remark in Calabar while delivering a keynote address at the 19th late Professor Bassey Andah Memorial Lecture.
She recalled that “the bulk of healthcare delivery challenges relate to issues encountered in the process of reducing maternal  and child mortality rate  which has become intractable”.
According to her “from the womb to the tomb, there are clinical conditions which could be prevented jointly by the patient and the healthcare team and a well spaced family through the use of family planning will ensure that babies have a better chance of survival which is not the case in most Nigerian societies”.
She said misplaced priorities by parents and the absence of effective health care delivery in primary and secondary healthcare facilities and even tertiary health care institutions which  have become  mere referral centres is worsening the healthcare system in the country”.
“Over the years, effective policies and programmes for the establishment of primary, secondary and tertiary facilities and institutions have been formulated to combat all health needs of the people but lack of efficient management has reduced the exercise to below average”.
Adenike added that the recent spate of kidnappings, terrorist activities, incessant  killings across  the country have had psychological, emotional and social  trauma  on the people which have aggravated the health situation of  people of all ages in many communities.
She therefore advised that  to effectively tackle and overcome health care delivery challenges, there should be effective planning alongside other relevant sectors.
This she said “should not be seen as business as usual but brought under frequent scrutiny by the relevant supervisory authorities to find lasting solution”.