SUGGESTIONS FOR THE NEW MINISTER OF HEALTH The current alarming increase of new Ebola cases nationwide means that the position of the new Minister of Health, Dr. Abubakarr Fofanah, is far from enviable. With such an impressive CV, expectations will be high, and people will surely be impatient for results – hoping to see the Minister register an immediate impact on people’s lives. Since we are all in this together, I’m sure the Minister will leave an open suggestion box for well-meaning nationals like myself to chip in with one or two points for his attention. (1) The Minister should remember to seek, on an equal footing, the provision of food relief for the entrapped healthy population while fostering for medical relief for the Ebola affected victims. Under normal circumstances, the socio-economic plight of the people had already been a struggle. Imagine what people are going through now that the virus had led to the restriction of movement! It will be to his credit if we begin to see military trucks distributing essential food supplies to people. Government should even think of building huge warehouses in the main district headquarters to store shipment of rice, sugar, oil, imported Gari and other food stuffs. It’s high time the government started it’s own importation of essential foodstuffs. In the long run, these warehouses can act as price stability agents, particularly against traders who are always in the habit of hoarding to maximize profits. (2) The Minister should opt for an all-out approach towards the building of new isolated medical centers in the north and western areas of the country. The idea of traveling all the way to the Kenema and Kailahun centers is one way of down-playing the magnitude of the problem. The daily increase of new cases in the north and west makes it imperative for us to tackle the crises with a more practical reality. We shouldn’t allow the issue of time to stall our proportionate response to scale of a national emergency. This is not a virus that will simply disappear into thin air within a short period of time. Start construction now and see what happens in a week’s time! Besides, these isolated medical centers will have to be preserved for the future, even after the virus has been conquered. (3) We need incentives for the Doctors, Nurses and Workers risking their lives on a daily basis to serve the nation. They are no less than the military force that fought in the war-front during the rebel incursion! They need to be issued life insurance, medical insurance for their families, government scholarships and free education for their children etc. The nation has lost a big number of our gallant medical soldiers, thus, incentives are necessary if we should provide needed assurances good enough to attract new volunteers. As the numbers of infected cases increase, the current medical staff will be stretched. New volunteers will surely bring the overwhelming advantage needed to defeat the virus. (4) Help coming from the US and other western countries will surely be targeting all the affected regions, no doubt, but there might come a time when the issue will be approached country by country, instead of treating us as a regional lump. I advise that the statistics of our infected victims be presented in proportion to our national statistics. For example, curing 100 people in SL could give a high percentage score on national statistics than curing 100 in Guinea. [No down-grading of their emergency meant!] Imagine, 1,000 infected people in SL is a huge percentage on six million inhabitants than what would be the case on a 12 million inhabitants. If the focus of the vaccine comes into effect, and total eradication becomes the topic of discussion, then SL deserves more concentrated efforts because the percentage threat to the population in the country exceeds the rest in the region. (5) News that the Minister is a medical doctor who has spent part of his blessed life lecturing at FBC came as a welcomed relief. I’m sure he is well briefed on the psychological significance of getting the affected people in proper mindset to put up a fight against the virus. We expect the Minister to work towards the provision of counseling of quarantined patients (even if through loud-speakers or mobile phone) for them to keep the faith. It is never over until it’s over! These patients should be made to live in a clean environment, watch TV, allowances made for them to speak to their loved ones on phones, given hopeful news on vaccine developments etc. (6) Apart from the official dealings, it would be worthwhile for the Minister to keep a courtesy communication link with all the heads of humanitarian organizations [including the WHO] who are presently offering immeasurable assistance in Sierra Leone, paying casual visits, making regular calls to convey the appreciation of the government and people of Sierra Leone for their life-saving mission to our country, crossing borders to make a difference in our lives. It could even be extended by making long distance phone calls to their respect headquarters in Europe and the rest of the world. Such minor gestures of gratitude do go a long way to put us and our country in a dignified outlook. (7) On the diplomatic front, we need the new Minister to partner with his colleague Minister of Foreign Affairs and also Information, cataloguing all the positive development that should stop the stigmatization of our nationals. Unless firm action is taken, there is a tendency for even our Ebola-free nationals from the West African region to be refused connecting flights and thus left stranded at international airports. We need to see invigorated efforts coming from the Ministries of Health, Foreign Affairs and Information directed towards airline head offices around the world not to compound an already dire situation by abandoning our nationals. In as much as they do have a right to take maximum protective measures through vigilant checking, we also expect them to balance the handling of the unfortunate situation through understanding, and compassion for the plight of our nationals. (8) There is nothing wrong if the new Minister should regularly consult with the former Minister of Health over issues that he deems fit. I am quite certain, having been in the job at the early stages of the crises, there will be many areas of common interest to share. It’s a forgone conclusion that she will be just too willing to continue to offer her unfettered support in the fight against this Ebola killing machine. Our country is going through one of the worst challenges in its post-independence history. This is indeed a chance for our new Minister of Health to leave an indelible imprint in the history of our beloved Sierra Leone! I am sure he is up to the challenge! May the Almighty Allah help him succeed! Ameen. Unisa Kanu Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Posted on: Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:36:40 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015