Neglect of primary health system responsible for 80% health challenges in Nigeria – Diri

Bayelsa state governor, Senator Douye Diri has attributed 70% to 80% of health challenges Nigeria is facing to neglect of primary health system, saying if the nation’s primary health system were well equipped and funded, the COVID-19 spread and control would have been easy.

He also expressed his government’s resolved to pay more attention to the primary healthcare system towards ensuring an effective and efficient management of disease control and public health.

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Diri made the assertion over the weekend while receiving a report from the Ad-hoc Committee on Funding, Challenges and other related issues of the Bayelsa State Primary Healthcare Development Board.

Represented by his Deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, the governor described primary healthcare as the gateway to a vibrant healthcare system.

Diri also decried the long neglect of the primary healthcare system in the country, noting that the COVID-19 challenge would not have become an alarming pandemic if government had paid adequate attention to that health sub-sector.

While commending members of the ad-hoc committee for the report, he expressed optimism that the implementation of the report would in no small measure help in addressing majority of the health challenges facing the state.

He said: “The basic truth is that all the health challenges that we have in this world, over 70 to 80% are adjustable with primary healthcare.

“So, if we have an effective primary health care system, then we will also have an effective disease control and management system. The primary healthcare is the gateway to the entire health system.

“If we had deployed primary healthcare effectively in this country and even across the world, we wouldn’t have gotten to this stage of the COVID-19 pandemic that we are into now.

“So, you find out that it is a failure or lack of emphasis on primary healthcare that has taken us to where we are now” he said.