The Federal Executive Council (FEC) of Nigeria has approved the purchase of 7,887 dialysis consumables to improve healthcare accessibility for kidney disease patients across Nigeria.
Minister of Health and Coordinating Minister for Social Work, Ali Pate, announced the decision following the council meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. He emphasized the need to address the rising prevalence of non-communicable diseases such as hypertension and diabetes.
Pate stated, “In continuation of the President’s efforts, including reducing the cost of access to healthcare services considering the vast non-communicable diseases that we experience in Nigeria, including hypertension, diabetes, kidney disease, and several vascular diseases, Council today approved the one-off purchase of 7,887 sets of dialysis consumables for the use of Nigerians who are suffering from chronic disease in seven of our federal tertiary hospitals.”
The consumables will be distributed across seven federal tertiary hospitals: University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Federal Medical Centre in Ebuta Metta, Federal Medical Centre in Owerri, the National Hospital in Abuja, Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, University Teaching Hospital in Maiduguri, and Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital in Bauchi.
Highlighting the importance of prevention, Pate added, “Dealing with kidney disease requires not only dialysis but also prevention. That’s part of the efforts of the Federal Ministry of Health to ensure that we prevent cases of hypertension and diabetes that progress to kidney disease.” He also mentioned plans for public health screenings and lifestyle modifications to reduce future cases of kidney disease.
“This effort by Mr. President is to bring relief within the context of several other policy measures to ensure that Nigerians have access to critical healthcare services. And with this approval, we’ll provide those and I think it will bring relief to many Nigerians and their families in accessing dialysis services,” Pate concluded.
