Benjamin Omoike l Sunday, August 23, 2020
LAGOS, Nigeria – Lagos State Government has disclosed that it will engage the services of franchise companies to monitor health facilities for better coverage and improvement in the quality of healthcare delivery.
The Board Chairman, Health Facility Monitoring and Accreditation Agency, HEFAMAA, Dr. Yemisi Sholanke-Koya, who disclosed this at the Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja, stated that the Agency will embark on a Public-Private Partnership, in which some of its functions will be contracted to private organisations, to enhance efficient service delivery.
Dr. Sholanke-Koya explained that the arrangement is in accordance with the provisions of Section 49 of the Health Sector Reform Law of 2006, which empowers the Agency to engage franchise companies to monitor health facilities and ensure compliance with set standards, adding that the move will enable the Agency to focus more on other responsibilities.
“We will be engaging the services of franchise companies in our monitoring activities, which are in accordance with the provisions of Section 49 of the Health Sector Reform Law. Monitoring activities will be contracted to reputable private organisations, to enable us to focus mainly on activities such as accreditation of health facilities and inspection for the registration of new facilities,” she noted.
On the fight against quackery in the state, the Chairman maintained that the government remains committed to winning the war against quackery, warning that any facility owner or individual engaging in quackery will be sanctioned accordingly.
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Emphasising that the Agency is currently scaling up its monitoring and inspection activities to strengthen quality healthcare delivery, Sholanke-Koya revealed that HEFAMAA is set to introduce a Health Facility Inspection Tool called ‘Health FIT’, to foster efficient and effective inspection and monitoring of health facilities in the state.
She explained that the Health FIT is an android-based application, developed to make the recording of data seamless and to facilitate the real-time rendition of reports to the Agency.
While giving assurance of continued commitment to quality healthcare delivery, the Chairman disclosed that the Agency contributes immensely to the fight against the Coronavirus pandemic, through the development of COVID-19 protocols for health facilities, as well as education and sensitisation of facility owners on the need to safeguard the health of all residents.
She stated that the Agency displayed on its website, information, education and communication materials on COVID-19, sent text messages to registered health facilities, periodically, for necessary awareness and improvement of the knowledge of health workers about the disease, its prevention, diagnosis and proper referral process.
Sholanke-Koya assured the public that the Agency will not rest on its oars until it achieves the mandate of the government to improve the health and well-being of citizens.
