Government making effort to provide quality healthcare by 2030

KOHIMA — Minister of Health and Family Welfare, P Paiwang Konyak, on Thursday informed that the state government is making all efforts to ensure every citizen have access to affordable and quality healthcare through the Chief Minister Health Insurance Scheme (CMHIS) by 2030.

Konyak stated this during the launch event of a two-day training for health officials of Nagaland conducted by the Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO), India, at Hotel Vivor in Kohima. The training was aimed at strengthening healthcare system through capacity building.

Informing that the state government’s priority has always been to provide comprehensive health infrastructure, Konyak stated that its approach was to ensure its citizens have accessibility to healthcare that is affordable and available at the right time and in the right place. He added that one of the key initiatives in this endeavour was the CMHIS, designed specifically for the people of Nagaland.

He informed that permanent and indigenous residents not covered by Ayushman Bharat or other public insurance can join the health scheme.

Informing that the department has planned to add more services under the CMHIS to build a comprehensive healthcare infrastructure, Konyak has termed the ECHO initiative as a major step towards improving healthcare system, ensuring reaching those facilities to all parts of the state.

Established in 2008, ECHO India is a non-profit trust focused on bringing equity primarily in the fields of healthcare and education through capacity-building of healthcare practitioners and educators.

“When Nagaland became a state, its health infrastructure was limited and lacked advanced medical technologies and trained professionals,” he said adding “Now, all district hospitals have improved including TB and Chest Disease Hospitals, State Mental Health Institute, community health centres and the state’s first medical college in the capital.”

The minister added that Mon Medical College construction is progressing and foundation stones for nursing colleges in Kohima and Mon are planned. He added that they are not just launching a programme but starting a movement to transform healthcare in the state by making specialised knowledge accessible to all healthcare providers.

He appreciated ECHO partners for training dedicated healthcare professionals and commended their commitment to improving healthcare in India.

Dr. Akuo Sorhie, mission director of National Health Mission (NHM), informed that they are providing training, workshops and education to healthcare professionals to ensure meeting the evolving health needs of communities.

She said the approach maximises the benefits of improved healthcare infrastructure, ensuring people get the best care. She added that the approach enhances local healthcare providers’ abilities and improves community care quality.

She expressed confidence that the participants would be able to address health challenges and opportunities for the state during the course of two-day training programme.

Surojit Chattoraj, chief operating officer of ECHO India, shared about the organisation and their journey towards achieving their goal. He also highlighted its mission to touch the lives of a billion people by 2025 through partnerships and community support.

He emphasised ECHO’s commitment to sustainable development and community empowerment, stressing the importance of placing the right knowledge in the right places to transform lives.

He recounted the organisation’s initiatives in the northeastern states including the COVID-19 vaccination confidence advocacy programme, tobacco control training, and the universal immunisation programme.

He informed that the training programme was aimed at providing a deeper understanding of ECHO’s journey and model and also outlined their vision to empower primary clinicians with the right medical knowledge to save millions of lives.

Paromita Das, project general manager at ECHO India, highlighted key initiatives in collaboration with the Nagaland government, noting ECHO’s role in enhancing routine immunisation coverage, training 170 healthcare workers and over 100 cold chain handlers since December 2022.

She further highlighted the introduction of the National Tobacco Control Programme in February 2024 including a certification course on tobacco-free education institution guidelines that involved over 2,700 schools in Nagaland.

It may be mentioned that, ECHO India, in partnership with the State Tuberculosis Cell, launched a programme focusing on difficult-to-treat TB, enhancing the capacities of district TB officers, medical officers and National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP) staff for quality TB patient care and treatment.