The Special Assistant to the Governor of Cross River State on Nursing, Dr. Esu Coco-Bassey, has called for the employment and strategic deployment of more qualified nurses and midwives to Primary Health Care (PHC) facilities across the state, particularly in hard-to-reach communities.
Dr. Coco-Bassey made the call during an advocacy visit to the Director General of the Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency (CRSPHCA), Dr. Vivian Mesembe Otu.
The visit focused on strengthening nursing practice and ensuring that qualified nurses and midwives are adequately deployed to Primary Health Centres to improve maternal and neonatal healthcare and reduce preventable deaths.
Speaking during the meeting, Dr. Coco-Bassey said the advocacy was necessitated by the need to increase the number of qualified midwives in PHCs following the approval by Governor Bassey Edet Otu, through the Local Government Service Commission, for the employment of health personnel.
He commended the CRSPHCA management for the recent employment exercise, which saw some nurses absorbed into the system, but stressed that more nurses, particularly midwives, are still needed given their critical role in maternal and neonatal healthcare.
According to him, the State Colleges of Nursing Sciences have been accredited by the Federal Ministry of Health and the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) to train competent nurses and midwives who can provide professional care at the primary healthcare level.
“We cannot continue to allow roles meant for trained midwives to be performed by those without the requisite knowledge and skill. Deploying qualified midwives to our PHCs is key to reducing maternal and neonatal mortality in the state,” Dr. Coco-Bassey said.
CRSPHCA DG Highlights Need for More Nurses and Doctors
Responding, the Director General of CRSPHCA, Dr. Vivian Mesembe Otu, said she met a system with very few nurses when she assumed office and has since worked towards repositioning the nursing workforce.
Dr. Otu, a paediatrician, noted that nurses play an indispensable role in maternal and child healthcare and said the agency was also working to strengthen the availability of doctors within the primary healthcare system.
She emphasized that different healthcare professionals have specific roles to play in patient care and cautioned against attempts by individuals or professional groups to take over functions outside their areas of expertise.
“The Governor does not want to hear that any mother or child died or suffered complications as a result of inadequate professionals and specialists,” she stated.
Dr. Otu disclosed that following approval for the employment of 40 doctors, she would liaise with the Civil Service Commission and the Ministry of Health to facilitate the deployment of some of the doctors to Primary Health Care facilities.
She also called on nurses to demonstrate greater interest in working within the primary healthcare system, noting the significant gap between newly employed nurses and senior nursing cadres.
Training and Mentorship for Student Nurses
The CRSPHCA Director General further assured that student nurses would receive effective clinical training in designated healthcare facilities where experienced and trained nurses would be available to mentor them.
She reaffirmed her commitment to collaborating with the Office of the Special Assistant to the Governor on Nursing in line with the healthcare objectives of the state government.
According to her, the collaboration is aimed at ensuring that residents of Cross River State have access to adequate and quality healthcare services in accordance with the principles of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The meeting was attended by Heads of Department from the College of Nursing Sciences, Calabar, as well as senior management staff of the Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency.
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