ROUND 1 OF 2024 MATERNAL, NEWBORN & CHILD HEALTH CARE WEEK COMMENCES IN ABIA

REPORTER: PEACE AGBO

The First Round of the 2024 Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) Week has commenced in Abia State.

The programme is put together by the State Government in collaboration with the Primary Healthcare Development Agency and Partners.

Declaring the ceremony open in Umuahia, the wife of Abia State Governor, Mrs. Priscilla Otti, stressed the need for nursing mothers and caregivers with babies under 5 years to prioritize preventive doses of vitamin A supplement and de-worming to reduce the mortality rates of babies in the state.

Mrs. Otti, represented by Wife of the Deputy Governor, Mrs. Adaeze Emetu, expressed regret that preventable maternal and child mortality had been on the increase and announced that a renewed strategy and vigor required in the fight would avail nursing mothers and children under 5years the opportunity to boost their health.

She called on Healthcare workers to re-examine and update their knowledge, practical and interpersonal communication skills and attitudes so as to provide the needed leadership and technical support in Healthcare services toward patients.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs. Ngozi Felix, said the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week was aimed at delivering an integrated package of highly cost effective, yet result oriented, preventive and curative services that would strengthen routine services at Health facilities

For his part, the Executive Secretary Abia Primary Health Development Agency, Dr. Ulu Kalu, said activities of the week event included; administering of vitamin A supplementation, routine immunization for children under 1, deworming of Children under 5, assessment of nutrition status, malaria treatment and HIV testing services.

In separate goodwill messages from representatives of health partners in the state, Dr. Udochukwu Achonye of the World Health Organization and that of UNICEF Enugu field office, Dr. Ephraim Chukwu commended the state government for the initiatives and encouraged every one especially, mothers to embrace the progamme aimed at educating and reducing the high Maternal and mortality rates in the state.

Correspondent Peace Agbo reports that some of the nursing mothers at the event including, Mrs. Chima Chinomso, Mrs Amarachi Ahuchaogu and Mrs. Precious Samuel all thanked the wife of the governor and the health Partners for the week long programme in various local governments in the state and promised to utilize the opportunity to improve the health status of their children.

EDITED BY CHUKWUBUIKE MADU