FG, NGOs train NTDs health workers on mental health

The Federal Government in partnership with some non-governmental organizations, on Thursday, began a three-day training for frontline health workers to identify persons affected by Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs).

Daily Trust reports that the health workers from Kano, FCT, Anambra and Cross River are being trained under the project “Strengthening Access to People-centred Mental Healthcare for Persons affected by Neglected Tropical Diseases in Nigeria”

The ongoing 18-month project is supported by Anesvad Foundation with counterpart funding from a consortium of NGO partners, led by CBM Global Disability Inclusion, in collaboration with Federal Ministry of Health; Health and Development Support Programme (HANDS); RedAid Nigeria (RAN); The Leprosy Mission Nigeria (TLMN); International Association for Integration, Dignity and Economic Advancement (IDEA) and Jos University Teaching Hospital.

Fatai Oyediran, national coordinator of NTDs, said the workshop was organized to train healthcare workers on the best decision to take when they come across cases of NTDs and morbidity associated with NTDs in their facilities.

Oyediran, represented by Afolayan Gabriel, programme development, monitoring and evaluation officer division for the control of NTDs department of the federal ministry of health, said: “We launched the new NTD master plan last year, and in that plan, we observed that there are gaps in terms of intervention that people with NTD assess at the healthcare facility level.

“Most of the NTDs also come with a form of depression and anxiety. We’ve not been taking good care of that aspect of their care. So, this project is to strengthen access to care, especially mental health care for people with morbidity associated with NTD. That was exactly what gave birth to this project.

“The workshop today is to train our healthcare workers at the facility in order to build their capacity on what to do when they see a case of NTD and morbidity associated with NTD in their facility.”

Abdulazeez Musa, Country Director, CBM Global Disability Inclusion, said: “The capacity building workshop would put participants on the right path on how they are not just going to care for the wounds but also identify persons who are affected by NTDs that also come with mental ill-health, so that they can address it.”