‘Over 60 Children with Severe Malnutrition Admitted Weekly in Bauchi CMAM Centre’

Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi

As a result of EU- UNICEF intervention to shore up the health status of children and women in Bauchi State, over 60 children with severe malnutrition are being admitted weekly at the Community -Based Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) site at Aisha Isah Yuguda Under five Clinic, Darazo in the state.

Nutrition officer of the centre, Mustapha Yakubu, who disclosed this in an interview with our correspondent on Media Field Visit to the health facility recently, said before the recent stock out of Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), the centre used to have 80 to 90 children with the condition.

He said whenever the RUFT was made available, some clients were still not aware of the fact that they needed to resume their treatment, lamenting that this was one of the challenges encountered – the need to ensure that clients complete their eight weeks dose of the treatment.

He said, “In the past, our registered clients were from 70 to 100 on weekly basis, because the clinic is once in a week, but the number of patients have reduced.

“We tried (to reach) those with contacts and they are back, but some have no telephone contact numbers and live in hard to reach areas so they are not coming (back), which is not healthy.”

Yakubu then acknowledged that the RUFT was at present available and that they supply the specialised food based on request by the center for continuous treatment of malnutrition in the center.

Yakubu who commended EU – UNICEF for their contributions in enhancing the wellbeing and health status of mothers and their children, noted that the EU-UNICEF intervention in Bauchi healthcare services has been very helpful in the reduction of maternal and child health issues in the state.