The Enugu State Government has urged mothers, guardians and care-givers to take advantage of the state’s free maternal and infant healthcare scheme.
Dr Okechukwu Ossai, the Director of Public Health in the state Ministry of Health, gave the advice in an interview to the NANon Thursday in Enugu.
Ossai explained that the state government decided to make maternal and infant healthcare free in order to reduce the high rate of infant and maternal death in the country
“All hands must be on deck to bring down the maternal mortality ratio and our infant mortality rate because they go hand-in-hand.
“People who did attend anta-natal won’t even go to immune their children; won’t go for normal routine check for their children.
“So, we are advising every mother, now that Enugu State government is magimous to bring this programme of free maternal and child health.
“So, every mother living in Enugu State; and it is not whether you are from the state or you are not from Enugu; irrespective of wherever you are coming from people should endeavor to go and benefit from this government largesse.
“Because every life is important to Enugu State government.
“We don’t want to hear that because you are from Imo, from Anambra, from the North; a woman died because she doesn’t have the opportunity. This is irrespective of where you are from.
“Even if you are from Cameroon (outside the country) you have the privilege of going to benefit from this free maternal and child health services that Enugu State government had instituted.”
The director noted that the scheme is running in all the primary and tertiary healthcare institutions owned by the state government.
He stated that the government is now implementing a scheme, known as `focus ante-natal care’, which makes it mandatory for a pregnant woman to go for ante-natal care at an accredited medical centre before child birth.
The director stated that the mandatory check would help minimise chances of complication during pregnancy.
“If a woman delivers a healthy baby with the natural immunity and proper care of medical experts, it will be difficult for the child to die.’
Guardian