Enugu State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has authorised the upgrade of three hospitals in Enugu North senatorial zone (the Old Nsukka District) to enable rural dwellers receive adequate medical care much quicker.
The state Commissioner for Health Dr Samuel Ngwu made said this when he led a delegation of the state health management board to some of the hospitals in the zone. They were on a fact-finding mission, it was said.
Ngwu said both the Nsukka District hospital at Nsukka and Comprehensive Health Centre, Amalla Orba in Udenu Local Government Area would be upgraded to the status of General Hospital, so as to better cater for the health needs of the people.
Enugu Ezike District Hospital will be upgraded to a specialist hospital.
The state commissioner for Health assured that work would commence in earnest as the state government intends to leave no stone unturned in actualizing its focal agenda of providing basic health facilities to the citizens and other Nigerians residing in the state.
He said the affected hospitals after the upgrading would equally provide relief for commuters travelling to and fro the East to the Northern part of the country, in emergency health situations.
He demanded the cooperation of both the traditional rulers and council authorities of Nsukka, Udenu and Igbo Eze North local government areas in securing the equipments and properties of the contractors that will handle the projects as soon as they move to site.
Ngwu who was accompanied on the tour of the fact finding mission by some management staff of the state health board including, Dr Nnamchi Roberts, Dr Okechukwu Osai, Dr Hillary Agbo, Dr Ossai and Mr Emeka Nebo, the public relations officer, of Enugu Ministry of Health, lamented the dearth of facilities and equipments in most of the hospitals and restated the commitment of Governor Ugwuanyi in ensuring that the state hospitals are adequately equipped.
His words: ’We have seen and we have been briefed of the challenges of electricity and water supply bedeviling these hospitals. I assure you that the present administration in the state under Governor Ugwuanyi will tackle all the challenges head on, the health of the people is one the major focus of his government’.
The Chief Medical Director of Nsukka District Hospital, Dr Joseph Nnamani disclosed to the commissioner and his team that they go through hell in fuelling the hospital generator set on a daily basis for use, since power supply from PHCN was cut off, based on the hospital’s over N2.3m indebtedness to the organisation.
The Chairman, Nsukka Local Government Area, Hon Charles Ugwu and Hon Cornelius Ezeugwu of Igbo Eze North council area pledged to ensure the safety of the project contractors as well as that of all site equipment.