The Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, has highlighted the advantages of the recently launched Patients’ Bill Of Rights.

Professor Osinbajo took to his Twitter account on Saturday to explain how Nigerians would benefit from the bill.

“The Patients’ Bill of Rights is a remarkable effort at consensus and common purpose, in the face of the many challenges of our healthcare system,” he said. “It cuts out the noise and distractions and focuses on what is truly important: putting people first.”

According to the Vice President, the respect for human dignity is a universal principle and people never forget how they are treated, especially when they are at their most vulnerable.

He noted that while the ultimate goal was to ensure that the patient was alive and in good health, it was just as important that the journey to the realisation of the final goal was underpinned by the full preservation of human dignity.

“It serves as a code of accountability, constantly reminding us of the primary purpose of the healthcare system, and of the obligations of every player and stakeholder in that system. It helps to clarify consumers’ expectation of providers and the providers’ responsibilities to consumers,” Osinbajo added.

In the areas of policy and funding, he revealed that the Federal Government was aware of the challenges of the health sector.

Professor Osinbajo, however, explained that this was why the government decided to single-mindedly pursue the attainment of Universal Health coverage for all Nigerians.

He stressed that for the first time in the nation’s history, the 2018 budget allocated one per cent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund towards the funding of key health initiatives, in compliance with the National Health Act.

The Vice President described the bill as “a very timely complement to these policy and funding interventions.”

The government launched the Patients’ Bill of Rights on Tuesday in Abuja at an event organised by the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) and the Federal Ministry of Health.

Osinbajo had said that it would translate into new standards of quality, equity and dignity in patients’ experience in healthcare in the country.

He was also hopeful that the bill would stand as a bridge of dignity that links the right to life of an individual and minimum standards of healthcare.

•Culled from a Channels TV report

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