Reps to investigate prevalence of substandard healthcare facilities

The House of Representatives on Thursday resolved to investigate the prevalence of fake/substandard healthcare facilities by unqualified professionals.

The move according to the House was to ensure that adequate sanctions are visited on culprits.

The House would also investigate the process of registration of both the personnel and facilities as well as monitoring of ownership and operations of health facilities.

The committee is expected to report back to the House within four weeks for further legislative action.

The House resolution followed a motion moved by Hon. Patrick Asadu entitled, “Need to investigate the rising incidents of non-qualified health personnel offering the much needed Health Care Services to unsuspecting Nigerians and its disastrous consequences.”

The lawmaker in his motion said that, “the combination of rising stress occasioned by economic recession and inadequate health infrastructure combine to make health care delivery difficult for most Nigerians.”

To this end, he said that, the near desperate state of Nigeria’s health care system had created a large space for people with need for health care delivery.

According to him, the trend had encouraged unscrupulous and unqualified ‘professionals’ to engage in series of malpractices and quackery that have worsened the fate of patients and other health care users.

Most of the lawmakers who contributed to the motion were of the opinion that the issue should be thoroughly addressed, in order to ensure that Nigerians get quality health care services when the need arises.

The Speaker, Hon. Yakubu Dogara who presided over the plenary session said the House would determine which of the committee of the House would lead the investigation when there was arguments against setting up ad hoc committee.