Dino Melaye, a disgrace to the Senate - Tinubu

Vanguard, THURSDAY, JULY 14, 2016 — 27
By Josephine Agbonkhese
& Anino Aganbi
FROM the suspension of
one industrial action to the
wake of another…all leaving
patients in the hands of merciless
death, the recurrent crisis in the
public health sector doesn’t seem
to go away soon.
At least not with government’s
seeming inability to immediately
resolve the demands over
agreements entered into years
back with various health sector
unions on improved working
conditions, equipment, facilities
and infrastructure across public
health institutions in the country.
SPECIAL REPORT
Health sector’s unending crisis, maternal
health and traditional birth attendants
Buhari’s latest
medical trip
While the public health sector
begs for aid to jerk back to its foot
however, political leaders have
long ‘shamelessly’ found
themselves alternatives in the
health facilities of other nations,
and would, at the slightest
discomfort, travel across seas and
oceans to seek treatment at the
expense of the entire public.
That ‘norm’ was only recently
restricted by the Buhari
administration. Though it didn’t
take long for it to be flouted when
he himself embarked on a 10-day
trip to the UK to further treat an
ear infection on the alleged advice
of his in-country physician. The
uproar from both the public and
medical bigwigs will definitely
not be forgotten in a hurry as it
further opened doors for
discussions on the state of
healthcare in the country.
Is ‘He’ cheating?
WHAT you don’t know does
not hurt you, is the
wisdom of the elders; but for some
reason, women will hunt and lay
in wait, not having a moment’s
rest until they catch a cheating
mate.
Unknown to them, their male
counterparts have imbibed the
saying made popular by late
Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe
which says since the hunter has
learnt to shoot without missing,
the birds have learnt to fly without
perching.
Anyway, some self-styled
experts insist they know the deal.
The usual suspects
Lipstick on his collar or clothes,
unexpected marks indicative of
sexual activity on his body,
another woman’s scent on his
clothes or hair. Especially if this
happens more than once. His
sister came by the office that day?
Yeah, right!
Longer days, shorter nights
All of a sudden, his working
days are longer, maybe he even
has to travel, so he’s away from
you overnight, for a couple of
Traditional birth attendants with a pregnant woman
days at a time, or even longer.
Especially when this is coupled
with some of the other signs,
these are clear pointers that he
probably is playing away. The
same holds true of sudden,
increased lifestyle expenses
(drinks, meals, hotels) that don’t
include you.
In his own world
Even when he’s physically
present, he’s off in his own world.
He’s not really there with you.
He takes himself seriously
Suddenly, he takes a lot more
trouble over his appearance,
whether that means dressing
Traditional medicine practice
Nature abhors vacuum, no
doubt. Thus, while healthcareespecially
primary healthcare
which is supposed to be the
better, or a sudden heavy use of
aftershave. Now he goes to the
gym and lifting weights. This is
more worrisome
Showering before coming to
bed.
Sometimes signifies guilt or a
desire to avoid detection of the
scent of a lover. He may also be
cleaning his car to remove any
signs of another woman. Look out
for earrings, hair accessories,
even chipped nails.
He’s talking of her a lot
A new enthusiasm for a
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closest to grassroots peoplesuffers
serious decline and
remains inaccessible in most
areas; traditional medicine
practice has continued to boom
even though it’s the 21 st
The group of
traditional
medicine
practitioners
who seem to be
smiling more
to the banks
appear to be
the Traditional
Birth
Attendants,
TBAs
century—and of course
hounding orthodox medicine.
“At least these practitioners are
available 24/7 (no strike) and are
quite affordable,” a regular patron
of one of them around Ikotun area
of Lagos, quipped.
However, the group of
traditional medicine practitioners
who seem to be smiling more to
the banks appear to be the
Traditional Birth Attendants,
TBAs, a group described by the
United Nations as persons who
assist mothers during childbirth
and initially acquired her skills
by delivering babies herself or
through apprenticeship to other
TBAs.
A recent report by the United
Nations Children’s Fund,
UNICEF, revealed that about
65% of deliveries are taken by
TBAs, as clients prefer them for
reasons ranging from culture and
religion to proximity, service
charge and attitude of orthodox
health workers to mention but
few.
Attitude of orthodox
health workers
According to recent studies, in
2013, 154,304 attended antenatal
at the Primary healthcare centres,
while only 16,699 delivered
there. The same trend continued
in 2014, where between January
and August, 121,451 attended
primary healthcare centres s for
antenatal, but only 13,000
delivered there.
Visit to TBAs: An observational
survey of some TBAs in Lagos
State by Woman’s Own further
affirmed UNICEF’s report. At
Shibiri, a popular bus-stop on
Lagos-Badagry expressway, is a
popular TBA simply identified as
‘Mama Ada. There were over 50
women when we arrived, the
massive one-storey building
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