The National Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System (NEMSA) has launched a new initiative in Kano state, engaging stakeholders to implement rural ambulance services focused on transporting pregnant women and other emergency cases from rural communities.
Speaking at the stakeholder workshop, NEMSA’s National Coordinator, represented by consultant Prof. Mohammed Hamza, explained that the program seeks to bolster emergency medical services across Nigeria, addressing cases of accidents, trauma, disease outbreaks, and critical maternal and newborn emergencies.
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“This program primarily targets women in rural areas, aiming to overcome the challenges of accessing medical services,” Prof. Hamza noted, adding that the initiative builds on existing emergency services to reduce maternal mortality rates in designated states.
Dr. Shehu Abdullahi, Director of Medical Services from the Kano state Ministry of Health, highlighted that the federal intervention would help the state ensure timely access to healthcare facilities from rural locations.
He explained that Kano has established the State Medical and Emergency and Ambulance System (SEMSAS), designed to transport emergency patients from their communities to medical facilities.
“We have set up a program implementation unit at Murtala Mohammed Specialist Hospital, equipped with a call center. In the event of an emergency, the center will dispatch an ambulance to transport the patient to a healthcare facility,” Dr. Abdullahi said.
He expressed confidence that this system would significantly lower maternal mortality, addressing one of the key issues, which is inadequate transportation for accessing timely care.
In a related effort, the Kano state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Abubakar Yusuf, marked the start of the Project 10 Million Campaign, a one-week free screening initiative for hypertension and diabetes at public health facilities across the state. He encouraged the public to participate, noting that individuals diagnosed with these conditions would receive free medication or be referred for ongoing monitoring.
