IfG.CC - The Potsdam eGovernment Competence Center

Minister of Health, Professor Eyitayo Lambo, yesterday in Abuja endorsed the use of information technology-driven health care delivery system as a way of dispensing quick and reliable health services. He said until Nigeria adopts the option of telemedicine and other information technology aided approach, the reliasation of the millennium development goal of improving health care for all by next year will not be realizable.

The minister stated this yesterday at the commencement of a two-day workshop on Telemedicine and Health organized by the National eGovernment Strategies(NeGSt) in collaboration with Society for Telemedicine and Health in Nigeria(SFTehin).

According to the health minister, Nigeria has a peculiar problem in that there is a shortfall in the number of trained medical doctors, midwives and nurses, resulting in lack of capacity to give effective health care services to all who need it at the same time. He said as a way out, the country would have to adopt the ehealth and telemedicine approach to reach out to the teaming population of health patients who require treatment in various parts of the country.

Eyitayo noted that studies during his earlier research showed that the use of telemedicine among other forms of telecommunication devices in the health care sector remains the only way to bridge the gap between the few medical personnel and patients residing in remote areas in the country.

The minister explained that the strategy if adopted will go a long way in enhancing productivity in the health sector as well as engender rapid flow of knowledge from point to point.

The event was attended by Dr. Olu Agunloye, executive vice chairman of the national eGovernment Strategies, Dr. Felix Obada, Managing director National Government Strategies, Professor Cleopas Angaye, director –General National Information Technology Development Agency, among other dignitaries.

Autor: Chuka Odittah

Quelle: This Day, 21.10.2005