-Pres. Weah’s 3rd State of the Nation Address silent
PHOTO: Flashback- Health workers protest for pay last year (20190
By Garmah Never Lomo,garmahlomo@gmail.com
Despite the many challenges confronting the Heath Sector in Liberia, President George Manneh Weah in his State of the Nation Address has again played down this crucial sector for the second time on Monday, January 27, 2020.
In address delivered before Lawmakers at the Capitol Building in Monrovia, the head of the CDC government couldn’t speak to vexing issues confronting the health sector or give hope for its improvement.
But Mr. Weah, who took office more than two years ago on the mantra—“change for hope”, only told the Legislators that a revised public health policy will be submitted to them for their consideration.
Public health facilities in the country are all going down the drain, with lack of basic medical supplies including gloves and essential medicines such a headache tablets, with many public health centers lacking fuel to power their generator, while in some cases surgeries are done with torchlight. Only empty structures can be counted in the name that it is a heath facility.
Maternal death rate is on the increase year by year and public health center across Liberia have become prescription center with several patient dying due to no drug syndrome.
A UN Women report in 2017 says: “With 1,072 maternal deaths for every 100,000 births, Liberia has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, according to UNICEF. The mortality rate of newborns, within the first 28 days of life, is also high—37 for every 1,000 live births.”
Public health facilities are dark these days like forest due to lack of electricity and patients are being place on floor due to lack of hospital bed.
In the wake of this situation, a number of women are disgracefully giving birth along the roads around the country due to lack of easy access to health centers, some some even dying the way, after walking for many hours to reach the closest hospital.
Health workers are not being paid attractive salaries and their wages are delayed for months.
The elderly and children have died from communicable diseases like Lisa fever, measles, wooden cough and several others area.
Vaccination that should be free for children, parents have been demanded to pay small thing to vaccinators in various health facilities.
Simple drugs like paracetamol and malaria cannot be found almost in all the heath sector in the country.
In January of last year, a pregnant woman from Ploe statutory district died after walking ten hours distance due lack of heath facility in that area and she was buried along the road.
Again another incident occurred recently in River Gee County where a woman gave birth along the way because no closest heath facility around the area and several children have from sicknesses that can cured but because no access to health care.
In another incident in Liberia’s northwestern Lofa County last December, young pregnant woman, age 22 and identified as Hawa Kamara, she had entered her nine months on Friday December 27, when the unfortunate incident occurred.
In some cases, Traditional midwifes have literally become doctors/nurses by as they are compelled to perform deliveries. If God is on the side of the pregnant woman, she survives but if not, she dies; only because there is not health facilities and good road to have easy access to health care.