By Idrissa Bangura

At a press conference held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Auditorium Hall at Tower Hill, the Minister of Health, Dr Austin Demby has disclosed measures to improve Health emergency in the country. He made this statement at the weekly press briefing.

In his opening statement the Minister of Health, Dr. Austin Demby said he wanted to first be grateful to the media present for attending such an audacious event and also giving thanks to the president for giving him the mandate to serve in his second term. He furthered that the president is very ambitious to achieve in the health sector, and extensively said that nearly eighty five percent of the population get access to health facilities in the country.

He further stated that, if the health sector wants to keep its achievement going it must strengthen the primary health care. Adding that, the health sector must also continue to capacitate the referral system by empowering the ambulance system to be able to foster the transfer of patients from one hospital to another referral unit to increase the rate of saving lives and discourage the delays that have been leading to the lost patient’s lives.

He entreated about government ambition to boost security health measures to fight against future diseases or epidemic. The Minister assured every media personnel present that health crisis is every sectors concern that it is a concern of the media, justice and health concern too. He said that the health sector gives the biomedical sides and expertise knowledge on this drug crisis.

The Minister said that the data announced by the senior Psychiatrist specialist came from the country premier teaching hospital. He continued that the president has appointed special advisor and appointed the Vice President to bring inter-ministerial team to advise him to shot national Health Emergency on  drug crisis.

The Minister also advised Psychiatrist Nurses to support the NGOs that want to tap into this drug crisis. He called on the collaborative fight of every community stakeholders to end this menace. He however    asked that, ‘’ how can any normal person take formalin used to preserve the dead in the mortuary as a mixture for drug intake?’’ He added that medical solution is not the only means to fight this drug crisis but the effort of everybody.

He cited examples seeing video this addict continuously hitting an electric pole because of the influence of the drug. He entreated that the declaration of health emergency is something the president is ready to do but advised the public to wait and see what could be the decision of the president; he continued that declaration of health emergency needs a panel of professional to advice on that.