… Promises To Strengthen Healthcare Delivery In Lagos State
The Health Facility Monitoring and Accreditation Agency, HEFAMAA, has concluded a three-day stakeholders’ session on the development of a five-year strategic plan to improve the quality of healthcare delivery to the citizenry.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the conference held at Jubilee Chalets, Epe, the Executive Secretary of the Agency, Dr. Abiola Idowu disclosed that the primary aim of the session is to drive relevant conversations and reach the right consensus to enable the Agency achieve its strategic mandate.
She explained that the session will enable the Agency review its performance against expectations of key stakeholders and leading practice, discuss strategic challenges and articulate actionable solutions to address issues highlighted in the present and future, adding that the stakeholders’ session will help the Agency revalidate and reach a consensus on the strategic direction, agree on the key anchors for growth over the planning horizon as well as key strategies to unlock them.
“As we envision where we want to be in the next five years, we are taking steps to reposition HEFAMAA in order to improve the quality of services rendered to our clients and the general public. This is why we are focusing on critical areas such as leveraging technology to provide efficient services, training and retraining of HEFAMAA staff and facility operators, enhancing community participation and health education as well as increasing our engagements with stakeholders and the general public”, she explained.
While appreciating the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu his support, Dr. Idowu noted that his actions confirm his passion for the good health and wellbeing of the citizenry.
She identified some issues confronting the Agency saying, “Few of the challenges we are currently facing include a shortage of human resources, although the State Government has approved that we franchise our monitoring activities to reputable organisations so that we can focus on accreditation and other responsibilities of the Agency”.
“We also need more vehicles to be able to visit health facilities in the State at least twice a year. Presently, HEFAMAA has registered over 4,000 public and private health facilities and more are still being registered. Our mandate is to accredit and license as well as monitor and inspect all the health facilities to ensure they comply with the set standards”, she stated.
The Executive Secretary also commended Professor Akin Abayomi, the State Commissioner for Health and the entire leadership of the Ministry for the unwavering support of the Agency’s programmes and activities.
In her welcome remarks, Chairman, HEFAMAA Board, Dr. Yemisi Solanke Koya emphasised the significance of crafting a strategic plan for the Agency, which she believed will go a long way in assisting to achieve its mandate.
“We cannot accomplish our mandate without a strategy, so also, we cannot operate without strategic thinking and planning”, she opined.
The Chairman, however, urged participants to contribute meaningfully to the discussion to engender a robust strategic plan that will point the way forward for the Agency in the next five years.
Highlights of the conference include presentations on the Overview of the Lagos State Health Sector; Regulation as a Tool for Quality Healthcare Delivery; Leading Practice Review; Key Findings from the Current State Review and The Journey Ahead – Vision for HEFAMAA amongst others.
The event was well attended by Board members of HEFAMAA, Partners, Chairmen and members of professional associations and other stakeholders.
