Rivers State Government has reiterated the importance of Data Management in ensuring quality Primary Healthcare delivery in the State.
Special Assistant to the Governor of Rivers State on medical statistics, Dr. Tari Lawson stated this last Friday during the first quarter review meeting of the Rivers State Primary Healthcare Management Board in Port Harcourt.
In her Presentation, Dr. Lawson charged the Doctors to ensure that they generate consistent, valid and correct data from their various health facilities and Local Government Areas.
Dr. Lawson noted that accurate data helps to identify health related problems in our communities and environment which in turn determines how resources are allocated.
She enjoined the Doctors to pay particular attention to data quality, stressing that a misrepresentation of data may indicate inefficiency on their part as leaders of various health teams.
“As heads of teams before you append your signature to data collection tools, ensure that you carry out data quality checks in order to identify problem areas and proffer solutions in the most cost effective way” she advised.
The Chairman of the Board, Dr. S. Etawu regretted that out of about five Million people in the State, only about a hundred thousand have been registered for the free medical programme in the last two years.
He stressed the need for them to do more in that area and advised the medical officers to ensure that they encourage patients to cue in to the free medical programme of the State Government.
Earlier, Director Medical Services at the Board, Dr. Theophilus Tanu who reviewed the activities of the Board in the last quarter, noted that there was remarkable improvement in service delivery and attitude of workers owing to intensive supportive supervision carried out by the Board and an increased outreach immunization Coverage.
He however, enumerated some of the challenges which included absenteeism by some health staff, unauthorized charges at the primary health centres and low patronage of the free medical programme at the health facilities.
