Total Health Trust (THT), a member of the Liberty Group and Nigeria’s leading health maintenance organisation, has created a strategic relief initiative to cover the cost of personal protective equipment (PPE) for hospitals under its network. This is coming as concerns mount over the dangerous level of PPE shortages increasingly facing hospitals amid the ongoing fight against the coronavirus disease.
The health maintenance organisation targets over 3,000 healthcare providers across Nigeria, supporting them to stay afloat under the surge in operational costs and adverse impact of restrictions imposed to break the cycle of COVID-19 transmission across the country.
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High cost of kitting doctors and nurses daily is already grinding some hospitals to a halt, depriving Nigerians presenting non-coronavirus cases of essential services.
About 15 hospitals across Abuja, Lagos, Ogun, Port-Harcourt, and Calabar States have benefitted from the relief initiative designed to span through the COVID-19 crisis.
Apart from relieving these hospitals of the burdening cost of protective tools, the intervention equally covers the provision of technical support for exposure to Covid-19-related cases.
Kieran Godden, THT’S chief officer, in a statement made available to Businessday appreciated the sacrifices of healthcare professionals to contain the spread of the deadly virus and raised concern about the risks they face to ensure a healthier Nigeria.
These concerns about health workers managing their own exposure to suspected COVID-19 cases while providing medical care to citizens informed the organisation’s drive to focus efforts on providing the necessary protection, according to the CEO.
“Our commitment to delivering the highest level of support to our network of healthcare providers continues, especially at a time when their operations and needs are quickly changing,” Godden stated.
“We at Total Health Trust, and indeed the whole country, remain very thankful to our health professionals, the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the state ministries of health for the immense and coordinated role they continue to play in ensuring that the country records success,” he said.
Godden urged other corporate organisations and sector leaders to play their part in the chorus of actions required to overcome COVID-19 as a nation.
