Save lives first before making other demands, Health Minister Pate charges hospital authorities

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, has directed management of hospitals in the country to always strive to save lives of people on emergency first before making other demands.

Persecondnews reports that the directive is coming amid several complaints about hospitals demanding police reports from gunshot, stab, or accident victims before commencing treatment.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Wednesday monitored by Persecondnews, Pate said the Federal Government had issued a directive to hospitals to always save lives first before asking for payment of deposits or demanding other requirements.

He said: “Recently there have been concerns about patients who show up at the emergency facilities and police reports being asked about gunshots or accidents. That is really unfortunate, life has to be saved first.

“Life first, and we have re-emphasised that. All our hospitals I believe are doing that. No person should come with an emergency, or life-threatening challenge and be made to lose their life while awaiting police report.

“Saving lives comes first and that is the direction we have given; that is what we would pursue and we hope that all hospitals including private hospitals will have this mindset that in health, it is save lives first.”

The minister expressed the hope that states will also follow suit in ensuring compliance with the Federal Government’s directive in their various hospitals.

He also said private hospitals have the obligation to follow the same directive, reminding them that as health practitioners, saving lives comes first everywhere.

Pate also hinted on the Federal Government’s resolve to expand health insurance in the country with the recent launching of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), adding that access to affordable quality health care for all Nigerians is critical on the path to achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

Persecondnews recalls that the Minister had disclosed during the launch of the NHIA that a staggering 90% of Nigerians remain outside the nation’s healthcare insurance programme.

“All is not yet well with the health sector despite the progress that we have made. One of those areas that is not well is out-of-pocket spending Nigerians face to access health. We are concerned about what this means to Nigerians on the street.

”Many people are being pushed into poverty as they have to pay out of pocket to access health services. That is the situation that we are in.

“But President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as part of his Renewed Hope Agenda for Nigeria, is committed to changing this country for the better. And for us under his leadership, we are committed to changing the trajectory of health of Nigeria.

“It’s been 40 years or more that Nigeria has been embarking on efforts to build an insurance cover. Today, about eight to nine percent of Nigerians have insurance cover.

“That is something we should be proud of, but also, is something we should not be proud of, because we know that 90% of Nigerians are not covered. So, our work is not done,” he had said during the launch of the NHIA.