BSAHN Calls on Community Leaders to Support Health System, Seeks Refrigerator for Ogbeobi Health Facility

BSAHN Calls on Community Leaders to Support Health System, Seeks Refrigerator for Ogbeobi Health Facility

By Magnus Emuji 

The Best Sisters Association for Health Nigeria (BSAHN), an organization implementing the GF/IHVN Malaria Programme under the supervision of the Civil Society Organization on Malaria Control, Immunization and Nutrition (ACOMIN), has called on community leaders and stakeholders to take deliberate steps toward improving the health system.

The Chief Executive Officer of BSAHN, Lady Patricia Adaeze Ideh, made the call during an advocacy visit to critical stakeholders in Okpanam.

At the palace of Obi Onyeayana Victor Okafor, Okpuenyi II, Lady Ideh emphasized that community leaders and all well-meaning individuals have a responsibility to prioritize the healthcare needs of their people.

She explained that BSAHN is currently working at the Ogbeobi Comprehensive Healthcare Facility, which is in dire need of a refrigerator for the storage of drugs and vaccines. 

According to her, health workers are often forced to travel to other facilities such as Akwukwu-Igbo and Asaba to obtain vaccines because Ogbeobi Health Centre has no storage facility.

 She noted that the drugs and vaccines are primarily used for the treatment of pregnant women and children under 5 years of age.

Represented by Ngozi Ejemba, Lady Ideh added that BSAHN’s mandate includes enlightening community members on the prevention of malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV. She stressed that all health services at Ogbeobi Comprehensive Health Centre are provided free of charge.

In his response, Obi Okafor commended Lady Ideh and BSAHN for their efforts to enhance healthcare service delivery. 

He pledged his support for the initiative and urged other well-meaning individuals and philanthropists in the community to invest in the health and wellbeing of their people.

The Association also paid separate advocacy visits to the Diokpa of Umuezegbe Family, Diokpa Raymond Egwuogwu, and Ogbueshi Patrick Ndih.

During the visits, Lady Ideh told the community elders that the lack of a functional refrigerator for storing drugs and vaccines remains one of the major challenges identified at the facility. 

BSAHN solicited the support of community stakeholders in providing the refrigerator, noting that government alone cannot meet all health needs.

In their separate remarks, Diokpa Egwuogwu and Ogbueshi Ndih described the initiative as a welcome development and reiterated their commitment to supporting it.

It could be recalled that Best Sisters Association for Health Nigeria (BSAHN) is a Non-Governmental Organization working to improve community health through advocacy, education, and support for primary healthcare services, with a focus on malaria control, immunization, nutrition, HIV and TB prevention.