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Osagie Ehanire, the Minister of State for Health, has called on record officers across the country to embrace the use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in record management as their role is indispensable to the attainment of universal health coverage in Nigeria.
The Minister made this call in Abuja, at the 2017 Annual National Conference/Workshop of Association of Health Records Practitioners of Nigeria (AHRPN).
He noted that the theme of the Conference, ‘The Role of Health Records Practitioners in Repositioning Primary Health Care Delivery System in Nigeria’ was apt as the workshop would not just appraise known functions of health records – collection, collation, analysis, storage and presentation of health data, but also strive to add value by laying the structure for healthcare planning and resource allocation in the healthcare sector.
“Your role as practitioners in this sector is critical in the nation’s effort to rebuild the healthcare system,” he said.
He noted that increasing demand for detailed and reliable data and achieving health records management manually has become a daunting task. The officials, he said, should avail themselves of knowledge of digital health IT revolution.
“As there is clearly no alternative to embracing technology, I shall be looking forward to seeing health records managers at various levels of the health delivery system striving to ensure that Electronic Medical Records Software Solutions (EMRSS) are deployed at their facilities and to migrate from paper-based health record-keeping to electronic health records management,” Ehanire said.
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary, Binta Bello Adamu, who was represented by her Senior Technical Assistant, Saidu Ahmed said that healthcare facilities across the country must imbibe the “Change begins with me” mantra. This they can do by ensuring that record departments are restructured, better equipped and well positioned to face the enormous and crucial challenges of health data administration and management.
To this end, she said that the Health Records Officers Registration Board of Nigeria must collaborate with Healthcare facilities and agencies to encourage and ensure the conversion from paper-based to paper-less records through the deployment of Electronic Health Records (EHR). This, she said, will guarantee data integrity and make the process of data and records retrieval easy for both patients and service providers.
Ibrahim Muhammad Mami, the Registrar/CEO Health Records Officers Registration Board of Nigeria (HRORRBN), expressed worry that inter-professional rivalry in the health sector has adversely affected healthcare delivery in the country.
He added that all health professionals should close ranks and work as a team to deliver quality healthcare services to Nigerians.
HARRISON EDEH, ABUJA
