Health Sector Set to Achieve MDGs (page 44)

Story: Lucy Adoma Yeboah
THE health sector will this year move ahead with its objective of achieving the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) with the implementation of health intervention programmes throughout the country.
To achieve its objectives, the agenda for the sector for the year will include expansion of the policy of High Impact Rapid Delivery (HIRD) and the Regenerative Health and Nutrition Programme (RHNP) to cover the rest of the country.
This was contained in the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government of Ghana for the 2008 financial year presented to Parliament on November 15, 2007 by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu.
The HIRD programme has been introduced by the Ministry of Health (MoH) to scale up interventions to help achieve the MDGs. These interventions include sustaining Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI), improving malarial case management, extension of health care and support services for People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) and strengthening programme management for guinea worm in the affected areas.
The Northern, Upper East, Upper West and Central regions were introduced to the HIRD programme on pilot basis last year.
The RHNP is to address problems of health risks arising from the changing lifestyles of Ghanaians, which include unhealthy eating habits, lack of physical activity and neglect of basic environmental practices. Presently, 32 districts in all the 10 regions have been introduced to the programme.
To achieve its objectives for the year, an amount of GH¢752,233,368 has been allocated to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in the 2008 budget.
Out of that amount, the government is providing GH¢268,517,036, with the various health facilities contributing GH¢115,070,600 from internally generated fund.
An amount of GH¢126,731,219 would come from donor support, GH¢6,485,000 from the HIPC fund and GH¢235,429,513 from the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
In addition to scaling up programmes of both HIRD and RHNP, the budget statement pointed out that the health sector would also initiate policies that would promote and augment workforce productivity and expand the coverage of the NHIS while taking cognisance of issues of equity, efficiency and financial sustainability of the scheme.
It stated that these priorities would be complemented by additional initiatives that would be launched and vigorously pursued through the promotion of healthy eating and the use of safe water with the objective of reducing food-related and water-borne diseases.
Other programmes for 2008, as contained in the budget, are the enhancement of quality and broader coverage of clinical care which would include referrals, revamping of hospitals and mortuaries, development of clinical protocols, provision of infrastructure and equipping laboratories, pharmacies and theatres.
Other areas to be looked at, according to the budget statement, would include expansion of middle level training programmes targeted at the training of medical assistants, midwives and health assistants for the sub-districts, while enhancing workforce productivity with improved health management information system and also the strengthening of inter-sectoral collaboration for effective health promotion.