Endowment fund: New funds for efficient health service

Access to qualitative health in Nigeria has always been an issue. But in this report by Sade Oguntola, ensuring better solutions and services in the area of medicine requires alternative funding, including private sector funding as depicted by the Oyo State government.

 

For little Kemi, a 10-year-old girl with high body temperature, the only hospital close by that her mother, Mrs Adenike Adeyemi can seek help is the village’s health centre.

Mrs Adeyemi, a petty trader, had always patronised the health centre when any of her children was ill. However, each visit leaves her wondering why the place was always in a terrible condition and often without drugs.

All over Nigeria, the dilapidated state of many government hospitals had continued to be a concern to many people. Some had become mere consulting clinics and many people had resorted to patronising private hospitals.

Often, the wealthy routinely fly out of the country to seek medical treatment and the poor are left at the mercy of poorly managed healthcare centres manned by not committed, ill motivated healthcare workers of all types or quacks.

Little wonder the vigour by the Oyo State government to revamp and reequip its hospitals through a N50 billion endowment fund. “We are asking individuals to help us to revitalise our 622 primary health care centres and 57 general hospitals,” said Dr Azeez Adeduntan, Oyo State Health Commissioner.

He declared: “We want our people to be given a chance to live whenever they come to the hospital that is why we will be renovating them to make sure they fit into international best practices.”

With health as one of the thrust of Oyo State government, he said a cardiovascular centre was also being planned to revert medical tourism.

“The commonest cause of sudden death in Nigeria today is heart attack, usually caused by uncontrolled blood pressure or unrecognised hypertension. Oyo State government has decided to arrest this, thus the intention to open a cardiovascular centre. The centre will also have subunits for kidney dialysis,” he added.

 

N5billion endowment fund, ambitious

Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi said raising the fund, was not over ambitious since the intention is to transform the state to a medical hub.

He said; “It marks a turning point in the history of health care delivery in Oyo State and in Nigeria. It is a major move to further bring qualitative health care service to the doorsteps of our people through involvement of the private sector in the funding of health care.”

 

Preservation of health, a duty

Governor Ajimobi who remarked that his government has always given desired attention to health declared, “preservation of health is a duty. Consequently, our duty as a government is not only to preserve health, but to enhance the health of the people.”

Adopting a public-private synergy in an effort to deliver health care delivery, Governor Ajimobi said had become imperative in ensuring a sustainable health sector.

“The reality staring us in the face in Nigeria today is that it is difficult for the country to achieve the sustainable development goals (SDGs) if we continue the business as usual in the health sector,” he said. “This is particularly against the backdrop of the several challenges currently confronting the country in meeting its financial obligation.”

 

Private sector involvement in health not new

Private sector involvement in health dates to 1883 when compulsory sickness insurance was introduced in Germany for some categories of workers. It marked the establishment of the first model of mandatory health insurance scheme.

As with other climes, private sector involvement in health care delivery is helping in no small way to complement government’s effort in the provision of efficient and sustainable healthcare services.

 

Goal of endowment fund

According to Governor Ajimobi, “our administration has also realised that we cannot fund health sector alone, without active support from the private sector and corporate bodies.

“The endowment fund will no doubt take care of most of the issues which have arisen from the dearth of funding owing to dwindling resources of the government.

“We have taken a pre-emptive review of the structure of the system with the intent of meeting the health needs of our people. This is in conformity with the sayings of the Buddha that “to keep the body in good health is a duty, otherwise we shall not be able to keep our minds strong and clear.”

With a board headed by Professor Oladipo Akinkungbe, an icon of medicine to manage the fund, he assured of its judicious use in line with his administration’s tradition of prudence, transparency and accountability.

Mr Paul Abolo, the fund’s chief launcher, described it as legacy and one to ensure sustainability in health, adding “Health care is life; when health ceases, life ceases. Health care is not a humanitarian or philanthropic issue, it is rather a responsibility. As such, individuals must meet this responsibility.”

Mr Abolo, who urged people to donate to the endowment fund, said the fund would go a long way to ensure that especially the poor and vulnerable people in the society will not have to beg for good health, even though it is their right.

Chief Medical Director, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Professor Temitope Alonge, corroborated that nowhere in the world is health managed primarily by government, adding that the initiative is synonymous with the public-private-partnership model.

He stated that engaging services of expert groups in procuring and providing veritable cheap equipment for hospitals was good, but cautioned on proper monitoring of the disbursement of the fund.

Consultant, Oyo State Healthcare Endowment Fund, Dr Bola Olaosebikan said work will be ongoing to continue to raise more money for the endowment fund for the next two years and that this fund will be going to a separate bank account different from that of the state government.

While the renovation and re-equipping of the government hospitals was to commence immediately, he said that the needs of all hospitals had already been assessed in conjunction with the local government authorities.

“We now know the best healthcare centre in Oyo State and the worse ones, including the ones the government will need to renovate immediately the launching of the fund is concluded.

“Health care insurance is for treatment, it is not for infrastructural development. This project is for development of infrastructure and making sure that hospitals are working,” he declared.