Health
COVID-9: Makinde pledges health workers’ support, commissions upgraded Agbami isolation centre
Oyo State governor, Engineer Seyi Makinde, on Saturday, commissioned the upgraded Agbami Isolation Centre, Jericho, Ibadan, declaring that health workers will continue to receive strong support in the fight against coronavirus in the state.
The governor, who was accompanied on the trip to Agbami by his deputy, Engineer Rauf Olaniyan, and other top government functionaries, stated that the welfare of frontline workers in the battle against COVID-19 will remain top on his administration’s agenda.
He said: “I want to also thank health workers, because you are the frontline in this battle, and you have had to work with facilities that are not up to standard but we have been partners in progress as far as lifting our health care delivery system in the state.
Please, do not relent. Let us keep doing this together to defeat COVID-19.”
A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Seyi Makinde, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, quoted the governor as saying that though the Agbami facility was commissioned at the twilight of the last administration in the state, it wasn’t equipped for proper use as an Isolation Centre.
According to him, the said facility was commissioned as a Tuberculosis Centre by the immediate past administration but his government has upgraded it as an isolation centre for COVID-19 patients.
He stated that the building would serve the high-end members of the society who test positive to the virus and are in need of privacy.
According to him,”there is nothing really much to say today apart from the fact that this facility was commissioned at the twilight of the last administration.
“Before we came in, it was a TB centre at that time. We didn’t know there would be COVID-19 pandemic, but here we are dealing with the virus.
“We give the past administration the credit for putting this together, even though it was commissioned when it was not ready. I came here, went inside and there was absolutely nothing inside.
“Now that we have the pandemic on our hands, it will serve high-end individuals in Oyo State who are not comfortable going to Olodo because they want privacy and comfortability.
“We know some of you have aged parents at home and because we have to give concession for such individuals to self-isolate at home and we monitor them, now we don’t have to do much of that anymore because with the facility here, you can self-isolate.
“You will go inside and we give you the treatment. We will ensure that you don’t infect others and once you have been properly managed, you go back to your various homes.
“I battled COVID-19. It is not a death sentence and it is nothing to be ashamed of. The virus is here with us and will be here for some time to come. It will not disappear two or three weeks from now. So, we have to learn how to live with it. If anyone is feeling sick, there are facilities.
“We have taken the opportunity of the pandemic to strengthen our health care facilities. When it is no longer here, our facilities will remain and we will maintain them.
“So, it is not a big deal that anyone tests positive to COVID-19 and I am not ashamed of it. I fought the virus and I am up and about now. I pray that as many of us that will fight the virus will come out of it doing very well.
Don’t self-isolate at home now. If you are a high-end individual, you can come here. You don’t also need to go and hide at private hospitals where they don’t have the facility, personnel and resources to ensure you have adequate care.”
The governor also stated that the rooms at the Agbami isolation centre have been well-equipped and fixed with oxygen concentrators.
“This facility has been upgraded now and it is now an isolation centre. We have an oxygen concentrator there and you will get the type of care you deserve,” he said.
The governor also appreciated a member of the state’s COVID-19 Task Force and former Chief Medical Director of the UCH, Professor Temitope ALonge and his team for the good job they have done and are still doing in putting up isolation centres.
He said: “I want to thank Professor Temitope Alonge for this work that you and the team have been doing and are still doing. We are quite blessed in Oyo State because we have the resources and people who can hold their own if you take them anywhere around the globe.
“I also thank the people of Oyo State for their support for this administration. If we look at where we are coming from, it has been a challenging environment. When we started the year, we had high hopes. But now, we have to shave off almost 35 per cent of our budget for the year simply because we are faced with a pandemic and economic meltdown. In spite of all of that, with the support of the good people of the state, we have been able to keep moving on.
“We do not take the support for granted. Keep criticising us constructively on what we are doing. Anything we are doing, which you think we can do better, bring it up to us and we will make the necessary adjustments.”
The Federal Government has facilitated the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the National Hospital and four private institutions to enhance the capacity of the healthcare workforce.
The participating institutions include Nile University, Cosmopolitan University, Yangongwo College of Nursing Sciences, and Concerned Medix Foundation.
This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Ministry’s Deputy Director of Information and Public Relations, Mr. Alaba Balogun on Friday.
Alaba revealed that during the signing ceremony, the Coordinating Minister of Health & Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, emphasized that the MoU aligns with the administration’s policy to expand training capacities.
Prof. Pate further highlighted that this initiative reflects President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to increasing the training of health workers, addressing workforce gaps, and maintaining professional standards through the Regulatory and Professional Schools Division of the Hospital Services Department of the Ministry.
He stressed the government’s responsibility to tackle multiple challenges, including infrastructure, equipment, and human capital development, noting that Nigerian health workers are highly sought after due to their excellent training.
“Thankfully, because they are well-trained, we are very proud of them. If we weren’t training them, they wouldn’t have been attractive to other countries.
“Unfortunately, that has implications on the service delivery at home. So as a government, we took a progressive stance to say, look, let’s train more.
“So that even if those who are trained leave, some will stay. And even those who have gone away might come back to serve. And, that is the driving force behind this policy approval by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” the Coordinating Minister pointed out.
Prof. Pate also underscored the crucial role of the private sector in achieving the government’s objectives, noting that Nigeria’s healthcare system operates as a mix of public and private institutions.
“So, the private sector has a space, and I am very pleased that you have joined hands with the National Hospital to be able to really see how the capabilities of the hospital can help you train more clinicians”, he said.
Speaking at the event, the Chief Medical Director of the National Hospital, Prof. Raji Mahmud, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for prioritizing improvements in the healthcare system.
He affirmed that the collaboration and signing of the MoU between the National Hospital and private institutions would significantly expand healthcare workforce training.
Prof. Mahmud further noted that three out of the four institutions are primarily training centers focused on medical and nursing education in partnership with the National Hospital, Abuja.
In a bid to enhance medical care for Nigerians, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed six new Chief Medical Directors (CMDs) for Federal Hospitals across the country.
Among those appointed is Dr. Ikrama Hassan, who will now serve as the Chief Medical Director of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lafia, Nasarawa State. Dr. Hassan, a seasoned consultant physician, previously served as the Medical Director of Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital before its elevation to a teaching hospital.
The full list of newly appointed CMDs includes:
Prof. Olusegun Sylvester Ojo – Federal Teaching Hospital, Akure, Ondo State.
Prof. Yusuf Mohammed Abdullahi (Reappointed) – Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe.
Dr. Dauda Abubakar Katagum – Federal Teaching Hospital, Azare, Bauchi State.
Dr. Ikrama Hassan – Federal Teaching Hospital, Lafia, Nasarawa State.
Dr. Ali Mohammed Ramat – National Orthopedic Hospital, Maiduguri, Borno State.
Dr. Haruna Abubakar Shehu – Federal Medical Centre, Kafanchan, Kaduna State.
Each appointment is for a four-year term, effective from the date of assumption of duty.
President Tinubu congratulated the appointees, urging them to uphold the highest standards of professionalism and service delivery. He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to improving medical infrastructure and ensuring quality healthcare access for all Nigerians.
Senator representing Kebbi South Senatorial District, Garba Maidoki has called for the establishment of a Federal Medical Centre to be situated in Zuru to cater for the health needs of the District and its environs.
The lawmaker in the 10th National Assembly made the call during a public hearing on the Bill to establish Federal Medical Centre in Zuru organized by the Senate Committee on Health.
In a memorandum presented at the hearing by the lawmaker, he explained that the aim is to provide tertiary healthcare facilities to the people of Zuru in Kebbi State in the North West Nigeria.
He further noted that the establishment of FMCs across the country was initiated by Decree No. 10 of 1985, with the aim of providing tertiary healthcare services.
According to him, the FMC Birnin Kebbi was established on June 6, 2000, and has since been upgraded to a University Teaching Hospital.
The lawmaker stated that the large population and the challenges faced in accessing healthcare services, necessitates the establishment of FMC in the state.
“In Birnin Kebbi, the state capital, the distance between Zuru Emirate and Birnin Kebbi is approximately 240 km, making it difficult for patients, especially children and pregnant women, to access secondary and tertiary healthcare facilities”, he lamented.
Senator Maidoki charged his colleagues and the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to support the bill, saying healthcare is a fundamental privilege expected from any government.
The lawmaker who is the sponsor of the bill told journalists during a chat that the Federal Medical Center, when established will not only cater for the tertiary healthcare needs of Kebbi State, but will also serve the adjoining states like Niger and Zamfara.
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