SIR: Permit me to relate my nightmarish ordeal with UBTH/NHIS recently. I am a Federal Government staff working outside Benin City. I have poor eye vision and was advised to see an ophthalmologist at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) using my National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) identity card which I had used earlier times without number.
I arrived at UBTH at about 8.00am. I started the process by tendering my ID card to sort out my case note, only to discover the card is more or less not tenable per se but enabled me to get another paper where the names of my family members covered by the insurance are captured and listed. Next was at another office where a form was printed out for me and then directed to the nurses’ room to check my vital signs. I was then directed to a doctor’s room where the doctor on seat gave me a referral to the eye clinic. All these were done in about an hour hoping that I would simply walk down to the eye clinic to consult with an eye specialist. Unknown to me that I had not started because the new procedure designed in hell to be executed here on earth is such that the poor masses are frustrated out of this laudable health insurance scheme.
At this stage, I was directed to another NHIS office within the hospital complex for another round of authentication. I was advised to be patient like other horde of patients milling around the office waiting for attention. I was reliably informed that an NHIS official would come from town, take the bulk forms to the office in town for another round of verification, then bring them back to the same office in the hospital for stamping before proceeding for opening of a case note. The waiting game commenced till about 3.00pm. During this waiting period one can guess what may happen to some persons particularly the aged and children.
By the time I got to where the case note was to be opened, I was again instructed to come for appointment the next day because I was late. The destination point, the eye clinic was not even booked for nor arrived at after a whole day’s effort. I was not only fagged out, I was utterly frustrated out of UBTH because of some selfish and wicked officials who designed a programme that is un-implementable.
What is more baffling is that all these offices are well equipped with computer systems and supposedly manned by trained staff. One wonders the use of the computers when papers are moved around five offices before seeing a medical consultant. Yet, all this happens under the nose of SEVICOM. The Federal Ministry of Health should do something about it if they are not accomplices.
- Peter Egwakhide, egwakhidepeter@gmail.com
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