Oyo PHCs: Stakeholders Stress Need For Improved Maintenance, Monitoring • Decry Alleged Patients’ Extortion.
Stakeholders in the health sector have raised concerns over the alleged extortion of patients, high cost of medicines, and poor maintenance culture among some health workers in primary healthcare centers (PHCs) across Oyo State, despite government investments in the health sector.
The stakeholders raised the concerns on Tuesday during a bi-annual media roundtable meeting organized by NEPWHAN to highlight the success stories and challenges encountered during the implementation of the Community-Led Monitoring (CLM) project, supported by the Global Fund.
Speaking at the event, Mr. Olawale Faith Abiola, the State Coordinator of the Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPHWAN), decried a situation where certain facilities fail to utilize their Drug Revolving Fund (DRF) proceeds to address minor operational challenges, opting instead to continually wait or beg the government for financial interventions.
According to Abiola, some facilities have abandoned the DRF framework designed to regulate medicine prices, leading to inflated costs and the alleged extortion of vulnerable patients seeking care.
“One thing I just want to plead with this government is that in the areas of these issues being identified in some of these facilities, government and the primary healthcare board should step up monitoring,” Abiola stated.
“Some facilities have money realized through the DRF, yet they refuse to make use of it for minor repairs, while a few others hike medicine prices and extort clients. We want the board to ensure healthcare givers are strictly monitored.”
Abiola also emphasized the need for the integration of HIV, TB, and malaria services, stressing that community ownership remains vital to sustaining the project’s gains long after external funding wraps up.
Echoing similar concerns, the NEPHWAN State Programs Officer, Olatokunbo Famiyesin, noted that while the Oyo State government has significantly upgraded over 300 out of more than 900 PHCs in the state, much work remains for rural and dilapidated facilities.
“What is now the lot of those communities and villages where these facilities do not exist or are in shambles?” Famiyesin asked.
“We want the government to upgrade remaining centers to WHO and UNICEF standards, provide necessary tools and protection for health workers, and make them presentable. The onus is now on everybody to ensure that the revamped system works as expected.”
Also speaking, Dr. Olusogun Adio, State Coordinator for Akomi Oyo State, advocated for continuous on-the-job training and closer monitoring of health workers, while urging community members to take ownership and partner with the government in maintaining local healthcare facilities.
Defending the state government’s strides, Mrs. Popoola Funto Aderonke, the HIV Desk Officer at the Oyo State Primary Healthcare Board, acknowledged that while the government is doing its utmost to ensure accessible quality care, a few bad elements continue to sabotage these efforts.
“We still have some people sabotaging government efforts,” Mrs. Popoola admitted. “What we can do is continue monitoring them and ensure that culprits are made scapegoats so others will learn that such behavior is unacceptable.”
Presenting an overview of the project’s impact, Mrs. Titilade Ogunkunle, Project Coordinator for the Family Counselling Center—speaking on behalf the three Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) ( RAPAC and PriHEMAC) implementing the CLM project in the state—revealed that over 2,094 clients have been interviewed across various PHCs.
Ogunkunle noted that the CBOs have actively engaged community leaders, policy-makers, and Ward Development Committee chairmen, while also educating citizens on the Patient’s Bill of Rights. She, however, warned that negative staff attitudes remain a major bottleneck hindering smooth healthcare delivery in the state.
