Michael Olugbode in Abuja
The National Senior Citizens Centre (NSCC) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) to achieve Integrated Care for Older Persons, Mainstreaming Geriatric Care and Geriatric Home Help into primary healthcare system in Nigeria.
This is the outcome of a two-day national workshop on Integrated Care for Older Persons, organised by the NPHCDA in collaboration with the NSCC with support from the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The chairman forum of Executive Secretaries of State Primary Healthcare Development Agencies also endorsed the MoU on behalf of the states.
The Director-General of the National Senior Citizens Centre, Dr. Emem Omokaro, said with the multi-partnership has achieved, there would now be a robust and inclusive healthcare delivery model for senior citizens in Nigeria across the tiers of government.
Omokaro said the sustained demand on the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) are to capture geriatric assessment and care for older persons, train primary health care workers on care for older people, provide sensitisation on healthy lifestyle and nutrition for senior citizens as well as a technical working group on older people to be established for improved collaboration.
She said the NPHCDA is central to the mandate of the National Senior Citizens Centre to bring healthcare to the door steps of the people, including the senior citizens in all communities, not minding where they reside mostly as a greater percentage of older people living in rural communities and hard to reach locations.
An official statement issued by the Head, Public Affairs, Media and Communication of the National Senior Citizens Centre, Mr. Omini Oden, promised that renewed care for senior citizens is key to reducing morbidity rate in the country, and in the front burner to be explored for the older people, including control of non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, testing for cancer, Alzheimer diseases and other complications.
