KECCoH, dRPC sensitizes community leaders, health workers on child healthcare in Kano

The Kano Emirate Council Committee on Health (KECCoH) in collaboration with the development Research and Project Centre (dRPC) on Wednesday trained community leaders and health workers from Ungogo community of Kano state on child health issues such as routine immunization(RI) and antenatal services (ANC).

dRPC is a nonprofit organization that builds civil society capacity and social capacity for participatory development through training, leadership development and system strengthening in northern Nigeria.

The training which introduced the participants to childhood killer diseases such as poliomyelitis, measles, pneumonia, and whooping coup was aimed at strengthening the linkage between healthcare workers and community leaders for improved maternal and child healthcare services in the community.

Speaking on the objective of the event, Ubale Rano, project adviser at dRPC said the meeting was aimed “to sensitize the community leaders and health care workers on their roles and responsibilities as part of the enhanced community engagement strategy.  The Emir [Muhammadu Sanusi II] wants to improve the relationship between health workers and the community leaders and also the state of routine immunization in Ungogo.”

The officer in charge of the Ungogo Primary healtcare centre (PHC), Yakubu Dauda, while giving updates on routine immunization and ANC services in the facility said the PHC had achieved 80% coverage for RI. “Ungogo PHC  achieved 80 percent coverage for RI as at July and a reduction in cases of measles which is at just 8 percent;  we do not have challenges to do with routine immunization,” he said.

Magaji Guda is the village head of the Ungogo community who spoke on the healthcare-related challenges being faced by members of his community which he said were to do with lack of adequate healthcare workers in the community’s PHC hence delay in attendance to women in labour at the facilty which doesn’t operate night shifts.