NMA Sets Up Committee on Emergency, Disaster Management

The Rivers State branch of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has set up a 10-man committee on emergency preparedness and disaster management to map out strategies that will make health care services in the state effective, efficient readily available and accessible to the people.

Inaugurating the committee during the 2009 Physician Week in Port Harcorut, the NMA chairman, Dr Dango Kalio said the purpose of setting up the committee was to ensure that members of the committee come up with a proposal for a draft bill on emergency preparedness and disaster management that will be presented to the state House of Assembly.

“The committee will also come up a proposal on emergency preparedness and disaster management to be presented to the Rivers State Governor, Rt. Hon Chibuike Amaechi, “he stated.

Dr Kalio said that the establishment of a bill on emergency and disaster management will go a long way in protecting the lives of health care providers who attend to those affected by emergencies.”

“Hospitals, clinics, health facilities and staff and critical lifelines for vulnerable people in disaster, and they must react swiftly and efficiently.

“They must also provide safe havens and not disaster zones themselves. Health care workers must also be trained to work safely in emergencies, so that they can save lives rather than becoming victims themselves,” explained

According to him, the essence of the physician week is to highlight successes in the profession, advocate for safe health facility design and construction as well as build momentum to widespread emergency preparedness.

On his part, the chairman of the occasion, Dr Tobias Tony said the Physician Week would be seen as a week that the NMA should put a lasting solution to the continuous advertisement placed by alternative health care providers on radio and television stations.

“People who are non-medically inclined are misled by the adverts placed by such group of health workers which may later cause complications or lead to death of the patient,” he said.

He urged medical doctors to go back to the physician oath which, according to him, will give NMA a better image and also help the society at large.

In his presentation, Dr. N. Jebbin, senior lecturer, health department and emergency unit, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH), said hospitals that fail to plan for emergencies “are planning to fail during emergencies.”

He disclosed that every person in the hospital should be able to have basic live support, advanced live support and support training in a bid to make hospital safe in emergencies, readily available and accessible to the people.    

In a bid to plan for disaster, Dr Jebbin said the management of hospitals should raise disaster awareness at all levels to ensure effective communication networks.  

Sogbeba Dokubo