Mary Nnah
Following the inefficiencies that are consistently plaguing the Primary Health sector in Nigeria, which in turn is negatively affecting almost all aspects of the value chain, the Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria (PSHAN) is set to improve the healthcare situation for everyday Nigerians.
They plan to do this by providing quality and affordable healthcare using the Adopt-A-Healthcare Facility Programme (ADHFP) as a vehicle.
To this end, ADHFP aims to upgrade one Primary Health Centre to a world-class level in Ningi Local Government Area (LGA) of Bauchi State, Nigeria as the current state of Ningi Primary Health Centre requires urgent attention.
Some of the issues that the primary healthcare value chain face includes ineffective governance, financing, funding, and service delivery.
Access to qualitative, affordable healthcare remains a challenge in Nigeria for a large majority of the rural-dwelling, low-income earners whose first contact with the healthcare system is the Primary Health Centre.
Given this context, ADHFP was conceptualised by the Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria with the primary aim of adopting and standardising at least one Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) in each of the 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Nigeria.
The ADHFP confers several benefits including saving lives, improving health outcomes, job creation, and gender empowerment.
The ADHFP by the Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria was officially launched in Lagos on the 10th of November 2022. The theme of this launch event was “Bringing quality Health to the Fingertips of Nigerians”
The ADHFP will provide equitable access to quality and affordable primary healthcare to rural dwellers, lower maternal and child mortality, and reduce morbidity rates in rural communities.
The project will upgrade health facilities and infrastructure to meet the minimum standards of care, strengthen governance and accountability mechanisms to ensure Primary Health Center reform, and secure the Government’s commitment to expanding coverage of citizens under the social health insurance scheme.
The programme, according to the MD/CEO of PSHAN, Dr Tinuola Akinbolagbe, requires Private sector resources, but everyone can pitch in by going to adhfp.org and getting involved. This involves donating funds, time, using word of mouth to spread the word and even volunteering expertise.
ADHFP also has a live campaign on the prestigious Global Giving platform and would urge everyone to go on the platform and get involved from all over the world.
PSHAN is a not-for-profit, business-led organisation founded to improve Nigeria’s healthcare system by mobilising resources and capabilities to provide accessible, affordable, and first-rate healthcare solutions to everyday Nigerians.
Recognising that the government cannot do it alone, PSHAN adopts a coordinated, nationwide multi-stakeholder approach to create transformative health outcomes.
