By Sani Adamu Hassan
A Civil Society-led advocacy team has called for urgent intervention to address critical gaps in healthcare service delivery across Bauchi State, following a visit to the State Hospital Management Board.
The team, led by the State TB Network Coordinator, Amina Wagani, said the visit was part of activities under the Global Fund-supported Community-Led Monitoring (CLM) project aimed at identifying challenges in health facilities and improving service delivery.
Wagani explained that the advocacy team, comprising organisations including ALAYAHBI Women and Children Health Home Care and Welfare Bauchi, has been conducting visits to primary, secondary and tertiary health facilities across the state to assess gaps in infrastructure, staffing and essential services.
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He said the approach involves engaging health workers and community stakeholders to identify problems and escalate them to relevant authorities or mobilise local support where possible.
Presenting findings from the exercise, Programme Officer Gingerly Daniel, highlighted several challenges at the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH) Bayara, including lack of electricity and water supply, collapsed ceilings in key units, and non-functional laboratory equipment among other challenges in Ibrahim Bako PHC and General hospital Darazo.
She noted that these challenges were affecting the quality of healthcare services and required urgent attention to prevent further deterioration, especially ahead of the rainy season.
In her remarks, the Executive Director of ALAYAHBI, Hajiya Binta Abdulkareem, said the organisation remains committed to reducing maternal and child mortality, particularly in rural communities, through sustained collaboration and system strengthening.
Responding, Director of Administration and Human Resources, Isyaku Musa Muazu, at the Bauchi State Hospital management board commended the initiative and assured the team of maximum cooperation.
Muazu acknowledged the numerous challenges facing the health sector, particularly the shortage of medical personnel, revealing that only a few doctors were available to serve health facilities across the state despite efforts to recruit more.
He however, expressed optimism that the ongoing government interventions, including increased budgetary allocation and planned upgrades of key hospitals, would address some of the challenges.
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