Leadnaija
Saint Rachael’s Pharma has urged National Assembly to expedite action on establishment of a Health Development Bank.
This comes as the country marks 2024 World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week (WAAW).
In a statement, Chairman, Akinjide Adeosun, said the proposed bank would provide medium and long-term credit facilities to health institutions, fostering industrialisation, medicine manufacturing, and medicine security while creating employment.…Tap Here to Read the Full Story ▶▶
Adeosun noted the need for the specialised bank to address rising costs of healthcare and antibiotics in Nigeria.
He said a full dose of antibiotics is N20,000, making them unaffordable for many.
This situation, he warned, could exacerbate antimicrobial resistance (AMR) due to suboptimal dosing, increasing morbidity and mortality rates.
The enactment of Health Bank Bill would enable stakeholders in the value chain – manufacturing, wholesale, and retail – to access single-digit lending rates, reducing business costs and enhancing medicine accessibility. Adeosun noted that inflation, high energy costs, fluctuating currency values, and others have compounded affordability crisis for essential medicines.
He called for a multi-stakeholder approach to tackle AMR, urging professionals, from pharmacists to environmentalists, to collaborate in combating the menace. According to him, AMR threatens not only human health but also animal, plant, and environmental safety, posing a grave risk to life expectancy in low-income countries like Nigeria.
Nigeria’s healthcare-associated infection rates and high antibiotic usage – ranging from 65% to 79% in hospitalized patients – are significantly above global averages, exacerbating AMR.
The lack of potable water and poor sanitation further aggravates the spread of resistant microbes. Aligning with the WAAW 2024 theme, “Educate, Advocate & Act Now,” St. Racheal’s Pharma reiterated its commitment to improving Nigerians’ life expectancy through quality, affordable pharmaceuticals.
St. Racheal’s Pharma, headquartered in Lagos, is dedicated to enhancing life expectancy through top-quality, affordable antibiotics.
In addition to its pharmaceutical operations, the company’s Akinjide Adeosun Foundation (AAF) supports free medical missions and leadership education in alignment with UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 3 and 4….…Tap Here to Read the Full Story ▶▶
