REPORTER: EMEFIENA OKONKWO
The Enugu State Government, in collaboration with United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, has trained frontline healthcare workers drawn from the seventeen Local Government Areas of the state on the administration of Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements (SQ-LNS), Multiple Micronutrient Supplements (MMS), and Mid-Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC),on children between six and twenty-three months to prevent stunted growth and malnutrition.
The three-day training programme was designed to ensure the effective distribution and proper administration of the nutritional commodities procured by the state government in collaboration with UNICEF, so that they reach the intended beneficiaries.
Organised by the Enugu State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (ENSPHCDA) and the federal Ministry of Health, with support from UNICEF, resource persons and Nutrition and Communication Specialists from the world body engaged the participants in this intensive training programme.
Speaking at the event, the Chief of UNICEF,Enugu Field Office, Mrs Juliet Chiluwe, urged the participants to apply the knowledge gained during the training to help prevent micronutrient malnutrition among children and women.
Mrs Chiluwe encouraged these frontline healthcare workers to ensure accountability in the administration of these micronutrients and supplements, on children.
According to her, ” At the end of the training, the participants will have the capacity to administer the SQ-LNS packages.
“These commodities are meant for the children, so it is important that there should not be any leakages nor their sale to the local markets. You should ensure that the commoditied are evenly circulated in the health care units”.
Mrs Chiluwe commended the Enugu State Government for providing counterpart funding for the procurement of the enhanced SQ-LNS micronutrient supplements.
She expressed optimism that the participants would serve as trainers for other healthcare workers in their various local government areas, thereby ensuring proper distribution of the supplements to end users.
She further stated that the mandate of UNICEF is to partner with states to promote the rights and healthcare of children and women.
By attaining the right of children, it implies that the state is benefiting from having a high human capital index.
” So the government of Enugu State under the leadership of Governor. Peter Mbah collaborated with UNICEF for the Child Nutrition Fund with support from the USA. We are finalizing the training for frontline health workers who will administer the nutrients to children at the health centres.”
She encouraged caregivers and nursing mothers to access the micronutrient supplements, which are available free of charge at primary healthcare centres across the state.
In message on the occasion, the Executive Secretary of the Enugu State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Ifeyinwa Ani-Osheku,noted that the training was aimed at equipping healthcare workers with the skills required for the proper administration of the supplements.
She stated that the three day workshop being organised by the Enugu State Primary Health Development Agency and Federal Ministry of Health with support from UNICEF, is to train frontline healthcare workers on the use of SQ-LNS, that have been acquired by the state government.
“We appreciate his Excellency, Dr. Peter Ndubuisi Mbah for making available the Child Nutrition Fund and also UNICEF that contributed to the fund to be able to procure this supplement for our children in Enugu State.”
According to her, proper training is critical to achieving the state’s goal of reducing child malnutrition.
She explained that without proper training for Officers In-charge of the Health Centres and the Nutrition Focal Persons, the efforts will not achieve the desired result, hence the need for the intense training.
She equally stressed that the micronutrients are meant for children between six months and twenty three months,after which, it is expected that the nutritional status of these children will improve considerably as hardly will that children fall into malnutrition when it is appropriately taken.
Dr Ani-Osheku encouraged mothers to avail their children of this opportunity as the high dense micronutrients are free, to boost their immunity and nutritional status.
One of the resource persons, Dr. Robert Chima, said the training would equip participants with the knowledge required to reduce malnutrition and infant mortality across the state.
He noted that, as officers in charge of their respective health facilities, the participants play a critical role in ensuring the proper administration of the micronutrient supplements.
Dr Chima warned that without adequate knowledge and proper application of the guidelines, the supplements may not be effectively administered, thereby undermining the efforts and resources invested by the Enugu State Government and UNICEF in procuring them.
