By Our Reporter
Former Governor Peter Obi has extolled Nigerian health workers especially the nurses and midwives who, he said, are a critical part of primary health care delivery in the country.
Obi, in a message to commemorate the 2022 Nurses’ Week, stated that the nation remains grateful to the health workers, especially at the primary level, for their sacrifice throughout the period of the Coronavirus pandemic till the present moment, and for ensuring that the nation enjoys better health.
He reiterated that the health sector, being a very critical contributor to development in any nation, deserves government’s attention and firm support. He stated that aggressive investment in training of health workers should also be prioritized by the government.
“As studies continue to point to the impending scarcity of nurses and midwives globally, to the tune of 10 million by 2030, I urge the government to invest more in the training of health workers, especially nurses and midwives. By so doing, we can produce many hands to care for our teeming population, and have enough to export globally,” Obi noted.
Recalling his days as the Governor of Anambra State, Obi stated that he met a health sector already on life support, but with the right vision, investment and commitment, great milestones in development were achieved in that sector.
“On assumption of office, we realized that there was no functional school of health in the State. I recalled that as a young student, we were taught that Iyienu Mission Hospital, Ogidi, produced the first midwife in Nigeria. I, therefore, partnered with the Church to revive the hospital’s School of Nursing, which was then comatose.
“My partnership with the Church in the health sector also birthed other functional schools of nursing, including St Joseph’s School of Nursing, Adazi-Nnukwu; St Charles Borromeo School of Nursing, Onitsha; Our Lady of Lourdes College of Nursing, Ihiala among others. I also worked closely with the Bishop of Amichi Diocese, Anglican Communion, to establish the College of Nursing Sciences of the Diocesan Hospital, Amichi. By the time we left office, Anambra had a good number of such functional schools of nursing and health technology,” Obi narrated.
Obi further encouraged the health workers in the country, especially nurses and midwives, to continue to make concerted efforts towards societal development, stating that nation-building is a task in which everyone must participate.