The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Primary Health Care Development Board has said it will soon introduce 24-hour services in 50 healthcare facilities across the territory.
The Executive Secretary of the board, Dr Rilwanu Mohammed, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Tuesday.
Mohammed explained that for the FCT to have functional healthcare system that would provide qualitative health services to the people at the grassroots, there was need to strengthen the Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) and make them operate 24 hours daily.
He said 50 healthcare facilities would be selected from the 248 PHCs in FCT to begin the new programme that would operate 24 hours.
“There are emergency cases that residents often take to healthcare centres at night but meet no one at the centres.
“Most times women go into labour at night and that situation of not getting health workers to attend to them is not something we can cope with.
“When such selected PHCs are in 24 hours operation, they will provide healthcare services both day and night,” he said.
The secretary stated also that the administration of the present FCT minister, Alhaji Muhammad Bello, was committed to making healthcare services accessible to the downtrodden across the territory.
Mohammed also disclosed that 12 additional PHCs were being constructed across the six area councils.
