ACEPHAP in collaboration with Global Surgery Foundation launches Safe Cesarean Section project in Kano State
The African Center of Excellence for Population Health and Policy (ACEPHAP) in collaboration with the Global Surgery Foundation based in Geneva, has on 20th April, 2025, officially launched the Safe Cesarean Section Project in Kano State. The aim of the project is to reduce maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality associated with Cesarean Section in 10 project facilities in Kano State.
Delivering the opening remarks, the Director of the Center, Prof. Hadiza Shehu Galadanci, said the project is very necessary to equip medical personnel with the right skills to approach cesarean section and especially for the safety of the patients. She noted that steps as the pre-surgical preparations, instruments count and especially the checklist will be very vital in improving the standard of cesarean section in Kano State.
The Director also admitted that “We can only support the health system and hope that policy makers who are there will improve the system and human resources. We must ensure that every woman undergoing CS must have the right procedure, for the right person, at the right time, by the right team, and in the right place. This will improve patient safety and represent a high quality functioning system.”
In his remarks during the launch, Dr. John. from the Global Surgery Foundation expressed his satisfaction with the two-day Train the Trainer session, the official launch of the projecting while anticipating the two weeks training of other participants from the 10 facilities in the state. He noted that hands on approach, technical and non-technical skills especially communication, are very important to ensuring 50% CS mortality reduction. He then hoped for the scale-up of the project within Nigeria.
Speaking during the occasion, the Chief Medical Director of Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), Dr. Shehu Usman Abdullahi, explained that issues of maternal morbidity and mortality are timely and very high especially in the state. He however raised some concerns about the availability of the instruments in all the facilities in the state. The CMD then applauded ACEPHAP and the Global Surgery Foundation for this giant stride.
The Permanent Secretary of the Kano State Ministry of Health, Pharm. Aminu Bashir, on behalf of the Commissioner of Health, Dr. Abubakar Yusuf Labaran, who also graced the occasion to mark the official launch of the project, appreciated the effort of ACEPHAP and Global surgery foundation for the timely launch of the project. He also lauded the effort of the center for its several impactful projects such as KASSEP, also aimed at reducing maternal mortality in the state.
He challenged the participants to “disregard what they know and adopt the new and evidence-based knowledge that they will learn in this training” He stated that their role as stakeholders will ensure that all equipment is provided. While responding to one of the queries raised by a participant on transfers of medical professionals after trainings, he said “the ministry will ensure that there are no irrelevant transfers after the training”. He then launched the event on behalf of the state commissioner for health.
In their various remarks, the participants expressed their utmost satisfaction with the TOT and the successful launch of the project. They stated that they have gained new knowledge and are enthusiastic about applying it in their various facilities.
In closing, the Prof. Galadanci commended the state government, the CMD, the heads of nursing and anesthetics unit of AKTH, the participants and staff of ACEPHAP for making the launch possible. She expressed her optimism in achieving the goals of the project within 3 years such as leveraging data to improve government policies, building surgical health capacity in line with global recommendations and particularly ensuring the adoption of the use of the Surgical Safety Checklist by 90% among others.
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