Your health in 2021: 10 things you should know about accessing healthcare

To cushion the potential negative impacts of the persistent underfunding in the health sector, efficient health financing and health insurance schemes are required to provide financial risk protection for Nigerians. Image source: technext.ng

Editor’s Note: This week’s thought leadership piece comes from Dr Kemi of RelianceHMO, an HMO provider in Nigeria. She works to explain the different types of health insurance plans that are available for Nigerians, and highlights what everyone should take into consideration when choosing a health plan.  Despite a consensus with other heads of African […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

“I decided to be pregnant with my wife” – Men as nurturers for healthy pregnancy and delivery

Since our baby has come, I have entered another phase of support to both my wife and baby. Photo Source: Aloysius Chidiebere Ugwu

Aloysius Chidiebere Ugwu (Lead Writer) In January 2020, in the middle of the dry season known as harmattan in Nigeria, I was in Kano state performing my duties as a health advocate when I received news from my wife which redefined my plans for the next nine months. “Babe, I think my body is changing, […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

No Retreat No Surrender: Celebrating frontline responders in the fight against COVID-19 in Africa

Image Credit: Nigeria Health Watch

By Beti Baiye & Patience Adejo (Lead Writers) It is not surprising that the fight against COVID-19 has introduced a great deal of military metaphors in the media globally. The world has been at war with a virus and from the outset, healthcare workers of different cadres have been at the frontline of defense between […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

Kaduna State pioneers procurement process for family planning commodities

Mrs Habiba Luka coordinating the panel discussion titled ‘Direct FP commodity procurement by sub-national government, a Pioneer’’. Photo Source: dRPC

Kaduna state has gotten a waiver to procure Family Planning (FP) commodities as the state’s demand for FP commodities increases. This makes Kaduna the first and only state with permission to directly procure family planning commodities in Nigeria. The Executive Secretary, Kaduna State Primary Health Care Board (KPHCB), Hamza Abubakar, made this known during the Kaduna […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

Next Level Agenda in the journey towards UHC: Health for All Nigerians

Image credit: Nigeria Health Watch

By Aloysius Ugwu & Michael Atima (Lead Writers) When the Director General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr. Tedros Adhanom, said “Without health, people have nothing; without health, we have nothing as humanity”, he meant a world where everyone can achieve healthy and productive lives no matter who they are or where they live. […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

The need for women’s leadership in global health – The Nigeria experience

Image credit: Nigeria Health Watch

Editor’s Note: This week’s Thought Leadership piece comes from Women in Global Health (WGH) Nigeria, an organisation that was established to bring visibility and recognition of Nigerian women, shape global health programming and advocacy, and reform policy and in communities in Nigeria and the diaspora. They analyse the reasons why more women are not seen […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

#Innovate4HealthNaija: Improving Healthcare Access at the Future of Health Conference 2020

Innovations must lead to the patient, must empower the patient with information and encourage partnership, coordination and collaboration. Image credit: Nigeria Health Watch

Innovation is a term used to spur big business into evolving their way out of oblivion. In healthcare, refusal to innovate could mean loss of lives, especially for vulnerable populations who are most at risk of poor health outcomes and have significant challenges accessing quality healthcare. When the 2020 Future of Health Conference theme, Innovation: […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

Why Are Women Dying While Giving Birth in Nigeria?; Recommendations for Improved Outcomes

The 'Why Are Women Dying While Giving Birth in Nigeria?' report was launched to inform policy and community-centred solutions for women in Nigeria. Photo credit: Nigeria Health Watch

We have heard the statistics countless times. Nigeria accounts for nearly 20% of global maternal deaths according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). According to the Nigeria Demographic Health Survey 2018, only a mere 39% of live births occur in health facilities, with 61% of births taking place outside of a health facility. According to […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

#Innovate4HealthNaija: The Future of Health Conference 2020 is here!!!

Image credit: Nigeria Health Watch

After five years of delivering highly recognised health conferences focused on generating solutions aimed at improving healthcare access for every Nigerian, the 2020 Future of Health Conference will take place on Thursday, 3rd December 2020. The conference is themed “Innovation: Improving health and scaling up healthcare access.” Innovations in healthcare are important for every part […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

#GivingBirthInNigeria: Curbing Nigeria’s High Rate of Maternal Deaths Through Community MPDSR

Older women in communities act as gatekeepers in the uptake of better maternal health care practices. They must be included in activities such as the community implementation of MPDSR, ANC and health education. Photo credit: Nigeria Health Watch

Maternal mortality, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) is the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days following the delivery or termination of a pregnancy. The WHO notes that Nigeria alone accounts for nearly 20% of global maternal deaths. Globally, maternal mortality remains a major public health concern, especially in poorly […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

Mental Health, a Silent Burden for Women #GivingBirthInNigeria

Mental health problems such as anxiety disorders during pregnancy and postpartum depression after childbirth are serious conditions that should not be trivialised. Photo credit: Nigeria Health Watch

Adeona (not real name) narrates the mental breakdown she suffered when carrying and delivering her fourth and last child. She was sick throughout her pregnancy. And yet her husband expected her to function normally as a wife and mother and fully support the family. Through the morning sickness, vomiting and complications of her pregnancy she […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

Nigeria’s First Ladies and the WHO advocate for the urgent need to eliminate cervical cancer

First Ladies Against Cancer (FLAC), is advocating to increase awareness, access to cancer care, and influence policy direction in Nigeria with the collective aim of reducing the cancer burden in the country. Photo source: Medicaid Cancer Foundation

Editor’s Note: In this week’s Thought Leadership piece, Nigeria’s First Ladies Against Cancer (FLAC) and Dr Nono Simelela of the World Health Organisation (WHO) advocate for the urgent need to eliminate cervical cancer in Nigeria and align to the global strategy for cervical cancer elimination. In August 2020, for the first time ever, the world […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

10 things you should know about vaccine candidates

Image credit: Nigeria Health Watch

(1) Why are vaccines important in the COVID-19 pandemic?The COVID-19 outbreak has evolved into a historic pandemic, bringing unprecedented disruption to global economies. In response to the outbreak, public health measures including handwashing with soap and water, physically distancing and wearing of face masks have been recommended to limit transmission. The pandemic has caused a […]

Categories
Thought Leadership Series

Moving from advocacy to action in the fight against Malnutrition

Empowering Nigerian women could make a different in the fight against malnutrition in Nigeria. Photo source: UNICEF

The COVID-19 pandemic has not just exposed the fragile nature of the health systems of most developing countries, including Nigeria, but has worsened other related health issues in the country, including malnutrition. Malnutrition and other nutrition–related issues continue to be of public health concern in Nigeria, especially impacting women and children. According to UNICEF, “Malnutrition […]