By FOLASADE AKPAN

The Federal Government has established the National Task Force on Clinical Governance and Patient Safety to strengthen service delivery and improve health outcomes in the country.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, announced this in Abuja on Friday on his verified ‘X’ handle @muhammadpate.

According to him, the initiative is in furtherance of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for the health sector.

Pate said the task force was created to support the development and operationalisation of sustainable clinical governance and patient safety structures, standards and accountability mechanisms across Nigeria’s health system.

“The National Task Force will serve as a strategic platform for integrating quality and patient safety into all aspects of health service delivery,” he said.

According to him, the initiative aligns with global calls by the World Health Organisation, the World Bank, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and The Lancet Global Health Commission for low- and middle-income countries to prioritise high-quality, people-centred care beyond access alone.

The minister said the work of the task force would contribute directly to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly goal 3.8 on access to quality essential health services and support the objectives of the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative.

Pate explained that the task force would promote a shift towards improvement, active learning, behavioural incentives and capacity building, rather than blame and punitive actions where there was no proven negligence.

He said its mandate included conducting a national landscape analysis of clinical governance and patient safety, developing and standardising national frameworks and policies, and strengthening systems for the prevention, reporting and response to adverse events.

Other responsibilities, according to him, include promoting adherence to evidence-based clinical standards and ethical practice, institutionalising quality improvement and patient safety culture at all levels, supporting capacity building for health workers and managers, and enhancing patient and community engagement through feedback and complaint mechanisms.

The task force is also expected to establish national indicators and monitoring systems for quality and patient safety performance, strengthen coordination among federal, state, regulatory and private sector stakeholders, and uphold confidentiality in the handling of sensitive information.

Pate said the task force would be chaired by him, with the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, as alternate chair.

Its membership includes the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, directors of relevant departments in the ministry, heads of regulatory councils for medicine, pharmacy, nursing and medical laboratory science, as well as representatives of professional associations, civil society organisations and quality-of-care groups.

Others are drawn from tertiary health institutions, state governments, patient safety organisations and Nigerian and international centres of clinical governance and medical leadership.

The minister added that other experts could be co-opted as required.

He said members of the task force would contribute their expertise, experience and resources towards strengthening clinical governance and improving patient safety across Nigeria’s health system. (NAN)

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