By; PATRICK TITUS, Uyo
The need for diligence service topped concerns as the Akwa Ibom State Health Insurance Agency (AKSHIA) has commenced the weeklong accreditation of healthcare facilities as well as personnel for a smooth take off of the health insurance programme in the state.
Commissioner for Health, Prof Augustine Umoh while receiving the accreditation team on a courtesy visit to his office at Idongesit Nkanga Secretariat in Uyo yesterday, urged workers of the agency to be diligent in their work to earn trust of Akwa Ibom residents.
Prof Umoh noted that trust remains one of the cardinal ingredients that drives successful insurance scheme in anywhere in the world.
His words, “As you continue the processes of ensuring easy financial access to health for the Akwa Ibom residents, you must do diligence work because health insurance depends so much on trust. When trust is gone, you can’t run an insurance program.
“People must trust our service to be able to insure their health, and to improve the process of that trust, it means that we must offer good service. To be able to offer good service, we must have good facilities. Facility that can meet the required standard.
“So make sure that the baseline is set. If you set a bad foundation, you are going to have a bad process but when the foundation is good, facilities are okay for the people to see and accept to invest in, that’s when we will be in business”.
The commissioner, who expressed delight at the processes already began by the AKSHIA, said that health insurance programme is one of the focal areas hoped to provide better financial access to healthcare for residents of the state.
He said that though the health insurance scheme is new in Nigeria unlike in other climes, Akwa Ibom would leverage on experiences and the challenges encountered by some states in the country that earlier started the program, given the quality of the health professionals involved in the state.
Earlier, the Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of AKSHIA, Dr Igbemi Arthur Igbemi had told the Commissioner that the visit was to announce to him of the commencement of accreditation of healthcare facilities in the state.
Another reason, Dr Igbemi stated was to present to him the workplan developed by the Agency in collaboration with National Health Insurance Agency (NHIA), Ministry of Health and State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (AKSPHCDA) aimed to facilitate the journey to Health Insurance in the state.
According to the AKSHIA Executive Secretary, accreditation teams with not less than five members, and with representatives of AKSHIA, NHIA and AKSPHCDA have been sent across the 31 local government areas of the state to commence the process.
Present at the courtesy visit were
Dr Igbemi Arthur Igbemi, Executive Secretary, Akwa Ibom State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr Eno Attah, Ministry of Health Representative/ BHCPF Focal Person, Dr George Ekanem, Coordinator National Health Insurance Agency, Mr Williams Ebioko among others.
Recall health insurance is a social security network that guarantees the provision of needed health services to persons on the payment of token contributions at regular intervals.
The funds would be managed by the AKSHIA established with the mandate to manage and regulate the Health Insurance scheme for all residents of Akwa Ibom State, thereby increases life expectancy of the people of the state.
The commencement of the accreditation of healthcare facilities for the scheme through a check list developed by the Agency, is another phase of the process before the enrollment of the beneficiaries beginning with the vulnerable group using the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF).
Under vulnerable group are pregnant women, children under five years, physically challenged and elderly from 85 years and above as well as those in IDP camps.
