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Kenema Dr. Samuel Moses Stevens, District Medical Officer,Kenema Government Hospital
I am a member of the District Health Management team. I have served as DMO for 17 years in two separate terms. The first was from 1986 to1993. I resumed in 1996 following an outbreak of yellow fever in the district. This was through the efforts of the World Health Organization which desperately needed professionally trained and qualified medical personnel to oversee the distribution and administration of vaccines to contain it.
Before now, very few public health structures were set up by Government. The rest were established through community initiatives. Example, out of a total of 84 public health units that were in existence before the war, only 30 belonged to Government. Moreover, essential drugs were scare until in 1987 when the cost-recovery system in health care delivery was introduced through a nation wide population project. It went on well unto 1990 when a huge amount of our savings was forfeited following the closure of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International. The situation was worsened by the decade long civil war which led to the destructions of several health and facilities.
Out of the 84 existing public health centres then, 82 were totally vandalised and burnt down. Even the two Community Health Centres that were spared in Blama, Small Bo chiefdom and Levuma, Kandu Leppiama chiefdom, were left in terrible states.
As a member of the District Health Team, I can assure you that primary health care is improving. Basic medical equipments are available. And we have qualified practitioners to man them. Our people now have easy access to heath care services.
Polio has been completely eradicated since 2003 due to strategically planned and intensively executed immunization campaigns and exercises. Measles and diarrhea cases have been reduced drastically, while whooping cough has completely disappeared. Laser fever which is usually in our plans of action is still around due to limited funding, but structures have been put in place to eradicate or contain it when adequate funding becomes available.
A series of sensitization campaigns are being undertaken by Non Government Organizations, public health units and outreach workers. And they are yielding dividend.
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