The delivery of these services require adequate and competent health and care workers with optimal skills mix at facility, outreach and community level, and who are equitably distributed, adequately supported and enjoy decent work.UHC strategies enable everyone to access the services that address the most significant causes of disease and death and ensures that the quality of those services is good enough to improve the health of the people who receive them. Protecting people from the financial consequences of paying for health services out of their own pockets reduces the risk that people will be pushed into poverty because unexpected illness requires them to use up their life savings, sell assets, or borrow – destroying their futures and often those of their children. Many countries are already making progress towards UHC, although everywhere the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the availability the ability of health systems to provide undisrupted health services. All countries can take actions to move more rapidly towards UHC despite the setbacks of the COVID-19 pandemic, or to maintain the gains they have already made. In countries where health services have traditionally been accessible and affordable, governments are finding it increasingly difficult to respond to the ever-growing health needs of the populations and the increasing costs of health services. Moving towards UHC requires strengthening health systems in all countries. Robust financing structures are key. When people have to pay most of the cost for health services out of their own pockets, the poor are often unable to obtain many of the services they need, and even the rich may be exposed to financial hardship in the event of severe or long-term illness. Pooling funds from compulsory funding sources (such as government tax revenues) can spread the financial risks of illness across a population. UHC emphasizes not only what services are covered, but also how they are funded, managed, and delivered. A fundamental shift in service delivery is needed such that services are integrated and focused on the needs of people and communities. This includes reorienting health services to ensure that care is provided in the most appropriate setting, with the right balance between out- and in-patient care and strengthening the coordination of care. Health services, including traditional and complementary medicine services, organized around the comprehensive needs and expectations of people and communities will help empower them to take a more active role in their health and health system.

1. NURSES: A VOICE TO LEAD IN THE
ACHEIVEMENT OF UNIVERSAL
HEALTH COVERAGE IN NIGERIA
BY
NRS. TIMOTHY, IDACHABA; RN.
B.N.Sc., PGDE., RNE., (M.Sc in view)
PAAUTH, ANYIGBA, KOGI STATE

3. INTRODUCTION
Since the adoption of the concept of
UHC by the World Health Assembly
in the year 2005, followed by its
adoption in the 2030 Sustainable
Development Goal (SDG) Agenda
as the eighth target of SDG 3,
greater global attention is now
focused on the achievement of
UHC.

4. • In declaring the theme for the 2019
World Health Day, the WHO stated
that her choice of the theme:
“Universal Health Coverage:
Everyone, everywhere” was
predicated on the fact that despite
recorded progress in countries in all
regions of the world, “millions of
people still have no access at all to
healthcare,” and that “millions more
are forced to choose between
healthcare and other daily expenses
such as food, clothing and even a
home”

5. WHO IS A NURSE?
The Merriam-Webster dictionary
will tell you nurses are licensed
healthcare professionals who
practice independently or are
supervised by a physician,
surgeon or dentist and who is
skilled in promoting and
maintaining health.

6. • According to International Council of
Nurses (ICN), a Nurse is a person who has
completed a program of basic, generalized
nursing education and is authorized by the
appropriate regulatory authority to
practice nursing in his/her country. This
individual must be prepared and licensed;
to practice the general scope of nursing
which includes promotion of health,
prevention of illness, and care of
physically ill, mentally ill and disabled of
all ages in all settings; to carry out health
care teaching; to actively participate in the
health care team; and to be involved in
research (ICN, 1987).

7. Henderson defined nursing as “the
unique function of the nurse is to
assist the individual, sick or well, in
the performance of those activities
contributing to health or its
recovery (or to peaceful death) that
he would perform unaided if he had
the necessary strength, will or
knowledge; And to do this in such a
way as to help him gain
independence as rapidly as
possible.”

8. WHAT DO NURSES DO?
• A nurse's responsibilities may vary
depending on where they work, what
licenses they have obtained and how
experienced they are.
• Care givers
• Health promoters
• Advocate of patients
• Collaborators
• Conduct of physical and diagnostic
investigations
• Administering medications and
treatments

9. • Monitoring patients' health
• Operating medical equipment
• Educating patients
• Training and educating staff,
students and patients

10. WHERE DO NURSES WORK?
• Hospitals
• Clinics
• Offices
• Schools
• Pharmacies
• Ambulance
• Port authorities
• Home health care settings
• Senior living communities and lots
more (HOSPICES)

11. DEFINITION OF UHC
• The World Health Organization (WHO)
defines universal health coverage
(UHC) as the organization of health-
care systems in a way that provides
a specific health-care benefit
package to all members of a defined
population, with improvement of
health outcomes through financial
access to necessary health-care
services, and provision of financial
risk protection for members of the
population (WHO, 2010, 2019a).

12. GOALS OF UHC
The goal of UHC is in Pursuit of
extending affordable, equitable, and
accessible health-care services to
citizens through innovative health
financing policy reforms. This is in
recognition of the fundamental right
to health of individuals, as well as
the increasing economic and social
vagaries, which sometimes have
tremendous negative knock-on
effects on the socioeconomic status
and purchasing power of the
citizens.

13. Requirements for UHC
• These include
Equitable access to basic health-care
services; essential medicines and
technologies;
A system of sustainable financing or
funding of health-care services;
A strong, effective, efficient,
qualitative, and well-run health system
with basic health infrastructure;
Adequate and equitable distribution of
well-trained, skilled, and
Motivated health workers

14. WHERE ARE WE IN NIGERIA IN UHC?
While the successes recorded so far
vary in different countries and
continents, the case of Nigeria
remains very pathetic. Nigeria's main
strategic mechanism for achieving
UHC is her National Health Insurance
Scheme (NHIS), which is a
contributory social health insurance
scheme. Since the formal launch of
the NHIS on June 6, 2005, not more
than 4percent of Nigeria's population
has been covered by the scheme.

15. • In terms of service coverage
and access to health care, the
latest National Demographic
Health Survey put access to
health facility at below 40
percent, with skilled birth
attendance put at 43 percent
(NDHS, 2018).

16. WHY NURSES TO LEAD?
• According to a new
report published by the World
Innovation Summit for Health and
the UHC Forum, universal health
care won’t be attainable without
nurses and midwives.
• So, for the goal of Universal Health
Coverage (UHC) by 2030 to remain
tangible, countries need to invest
heavily in the nursing profession
now and into the future.

17. SOME OF THE REASONS WHY NURSES
ARE THE VOICE TO LEAD ARE:
• Nurses make up nearly half of the world’s
healthcare workforce and deliver almost
80% of the hands-on care.
• Nurses and midwives are a critical link for
people around the world to be able to
access primary care.
• Nurses are often the first healthcare staff
to interact with patients and sometimes
the only health professional a patient will
ever see.
• Nurses provide care, support and
treatment for the sick, the injured and the
dying and support their families and
communities.

18. • Nurses are intrinsically linked to a
country’s ability to address health
priorities.
• Nurses also have to be all things to all
people
• Nurses are very creative and
innovative
• Nurses build a relationship with a
community and local village workers
which works very well
• Nurses know the services available
and those that are lacking; in other
words nurses have a holistic view not
just of the patient but of the service.
We walk at all levels.

19. HOW WILL NURSES VOICE LEAD?
A. Health is a political choice — and
nurses need to be where these
choices are made.
B. Nurses are to go into research
and publications
C. Continue to practice using
evidence based principles
D. Acquire relevant certificates
E. Practice within the scope of your
training

20. SUMMARY
• Nurses are central to any universal
health coverage program. “Nurses
(and midwives) are present in all
settings of care. They have direct
contact with women and children,
and are mostly women.” They are in
position for advocacy. “Nurses and
midwives are leaders,”

21. • By being at the heart of the
community, nurses are best
placed to provide the level
of care that is required to
meet the increasing global
health challenges including
the attainment of universal
Health coverage in Nigeria

22. CONCLUSION
We all - governments, civil society,
health professionals and all of us
together have a responsibility to
promote nursing.
Director General of WHO, at the ICN
Congress in Singapore in 2019, said
that the WHO vision cannot be
delivered without nurses. Indeed,
when nurses are used to their full
potential the world will see a
difference in how health care is
delivered.

23. YOU ARE
THE
NURSE TO
LEAD

24. REFERENCES
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25. Enabulele, O. (2018). Universal Health Coverage (UHC):
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ormingourworld
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26. Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). 2015. Transforming
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