This programme will go a long way in changing the mindset of our teachers in the schools because the product we are going to be having is dependent on the quality of what we have inside us.
The state government of Enugu has provided training in health management and leadership to a large number of medical practitioners, including young physicians, nurses, and other health professionals.
These individuals were trained at the University of Washington in the United States. The training is in line with the mission of the government of Governor Peter Mbah, which seeks to revitalize the health sector and transform the state into a center for medical tourism.
The training of health personnel reflects the government’s determination to provide cross-generational capacity support.
Governor Mbah, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof Chidiebere Onyia, emphasized that his administration has set clear guidelines for the state’s shape within the next eight years to ensure that established institutions will remain irreversible through capacity building and outlive leaders.
This will complement and support older generations as they drive the emerging demands of the future.
“We are changing the landscape, setting something in motion, and ensuring that management is not stalling and maintaining the status quo but integrating the things that will catalyse the transformative process. We are looking forward to investments that will yield a return, and the return is in the way you treat other people and lead our institutions. We need a change in the feedback from those who come into our health facilities and not the ones you get among yourselves.
‘’We are holding all of you to very high standards. We would hold you accountable for the investment because our government operates on traceability, transparency and accountability.
“We want to see you do that in your behaviour and how you do things. Don’t forget that the state looks at you as our flagship group that attended the University of Washington training and management in the health sector.”
Dr. Yomi Jaye, the governor’s special adviser on health matters, the initiative was a component of the governor’s strategy to strengthen the state’s healthcare infrastructure. He also said that the trainees in health sector leadership and management have been appropriately certified by Washington University.
He said, “It is important to know that building structures and building facilities are not enough; that is why the governor is so pragmatic in his approach to say that capacity building is one of the aspects of what he is doing in the state.
“This programme will go a long way in changing the mindset of our teachers in the schools because the product we are going to be having is dependent on the quality of what we have inside us.
“The people that are going to be training the healthcare givers in our health institutions need a massive mindset change, and that was why we decided to enrol this set of people in a three months thorough course in leadership and management in health professional development.
“We are beginning to see changes in how they treat the people and teach in classes because they have gathered a lot of experiences in healthcare management and leadership.”