By Justina Auta
The Ultimate Health Management Services, an Health Management Organisation (HMO), on Tuesday engaged healthcare providers, enrollees and other stakeholders on improving healthcare insurance services in the country.
The Managing Director, Ultimate Health, Mr Lekan Ewenla, during an interactive session in Abuja, reiterated his commitment towards improving healthcare insurance services for every Nigerian to access.
“This is to create a formidable platform for the fertilisation and exchange of ideas and for critical stakeholders to meet to review operational issues that will enhance operations of health insurance in the country.
“The HMOs by law are licensed to drive health insurance, the healthcare providers are licensed to provide services and if they don’t see regularly, there will be lot of issues.
“This programme was designed to ensure that Nigerians have access to quality healthcare services and the only way they can have that is to provide a platform for critical stakeholders to look at challenges and provide solutions,” he said.
According to him, all issues discussed will be adequately addressed to strengthen services and relationship between healthcare providers, enrollees and National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
The NHIS representative, Sa’adatu Sabo, commended the organiser for the session, which she said would aide in improving healthcare insurance services.
Sabo said the services would soon take-off the E-NHIS, which would also improve access to obtaining claims and reduce incidences of impersonation, among others.
A participant, Dr Christopher Abimiku, the NHIS Coordinator, Federal Medical Centre, Keffi, Nasarawa state, said the session helped to create awareness of the scheme to both HMO and providers.
“Even though NHIS is not where it is supposed to be but with such programmes, it will get to where it is supposed to be.
“So, I encourage more HMOs to also organise similar sessions to broaden more knowledge on insurance scheme and with this, we will get it right.”
Similarly, Ms Catherine Attah, a participant from Nasarawa State, said the forum had broadened her knowledge on how to improve relationship with patients.
“Today’s session has taught me how to relate and not to discriminate between NHIS enrollees and other patients that are not covered under the scheme,” she said.
The interactive session drew participants from providers, NHIS and enrollees.
