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Tag: UUTH

  • Uyo collapsed building: FG medical experts arrive Akwa Ibom 

    Uyo collapsed building: FG medical experts arrive Akwa Ibom 

    The Federal Government has sent a 10 member team of experts who are majored in neuro surgeon to Akwa Ibom to compliment the efforts of medical personnel already on the ground.

    The team arrived University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, UUTH, Monday.

    Speaking with reporters on arrival at UUTH, the leader of the team and a consultant orthopedic Surgeon from University of Lagos, Prof. Suleiman Giwa, said that the team was put together on the instruction of the Minister for Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole to come and render helping hands.

    The special team of experts, he said, consists of two Neuro Surgeon, three Orthopaedic Surgeons, three plastic surgeon and two specially trained Operating room Nurses.

    He explained that they were in the state to offer necessary assistance and support needed for the victims of the collapsed church building.

    His words: “The unfortunate incident as you are aware did not affect only the people of Akwa Ibom but all Nigerians and the Health Minister in his wisdom decided that we should raise a team of experts to come to Uyo and render a helping hands and bring succor to the weak, the sick and those who are in dare need of complicated surgery.”

    Prof. Giwa said that team will visit all the hospitals where the victims of the tragedy were admitted and also examine them and offer useful medical suggestions where necessary to ensure that those who are sick get back to their normal life.

    Prof. Giwa said: “As we are here in Akwa Ibom, we did not come empty handed we came with drugs and other medical supports to make our coming easier, and we are prepared for the task ahead.

    “We have visited the University Teaching Hospital and we are now at the Ibom specialist Hospital, so far most of the patients we saw are responding to treatment which is gladdening ”.

    On his part, UUTH’s Chief Medical Director, Prof. Etete Peters Peters thanked the Federal Government delegation for coming to Akwa Ibom at the most appropriate time and not leaving the state alone in time of sorrow.

     

  • Kerosene explosion kills two, injure three in Akwa Ibom

    Kerosene explosion kills two, injure three in Akwa Ibom

    Kerosene explosion has killed two children and injured three others in Akwa Ibom State.

    According to an eyewitness, the incident occurred in Ikono Ibom Clan in Uyo Local Government Area of the state.

    One Mr. Nsikak Michael, a tricycle operator and father of three suffered severe burns from the kerosene explosion, which also resulted in the death of two of his children.

    According to Nsikak, who also operates a small poultry farm near his house in Ikot Enyingne Ikono, “I bought kerosene from a filling station along Idoro road as I closed from my Keke business.

    “Upon getting home, I decided to light up the lantern in my poultry farm to keep my birds warm but needed to top up the kerosene in the lamp as it was soon going off.

    “So I came out of the poultry farm just as my kids followed. As I attempted to light up the lantern there was a loud explosion with a big flame of fire which left me unconscious.”

    One of the two children died few hours after, while the other died the following day at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, UUTH, where they were rushed to treatments.

    The Chairman of Uyo Local Government Transition Committee, Mfon Ben and Wife, Bridget visited the victim Mr. Nsikak who lies critically ill at the Hospital as a mark of concern and love for the people.

     

  • UUTH resident doctors to suspend strike

    Resident doctors at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, yesterday pledged to call off their two-month-old strike over salary arrears.

    The doctors, who spoke yesterday in Uyo, under the aegis of National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), said the hospital’s management had agreed to pay their full entitlements, from end of this month.

    NARD’s President Dr. Christian Adeneye said the association’s resolve to suspend the strike followed a letter from the Medical Director, Prof. Etete Peters, who reportedly promised to ensure the full payment of the doctors’ salary arrears.

    Adeneye said the matter had been presented to NARD’s congress, which was said to have unanimously agreed to the resumption of work, following management’s pledge to pay the full entitlements.

    On other issues, such as call meals, the NARD president said the hospital’s management awarded a contract for its full implementation.

    He added that the call meals will only be effective when the doctors resumed duties.

    Adeneye said: “We are calling off our two-month-old strike over our salary arrears. The Medical Director of the hospital, Prof. Etete Peters, has written to us about efforts they have made to ensure that we get our full entitlements from now till early days of October.

    “The other issues have been tabled before the management. We believe some of them can be sorted out, such as call meals. The contract for call meal services has been awarded. The contractor is waiting for us to resume work for it to be implemented.”

  • UUTH doctors begin strike over unpaid salaries

    Resident doctors at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) in Akwa Ibom State have begun an indefinite strike over unpaid salaries.

    Addressing reporters in Uyo, the state capital, UUTH’s President of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) Dr. Christian Adeneye said the doctors were demanding, among other things, the payment of their full salaries from July.

    Adeneye said UUTH was one of the three national hospitals, which refused to implement the rightful entry point and arrears accrued from same to House Officers, as directed by the Federal Ministry of Health.

    The union leader condemned ‘’the unfair denial’’ of terminal salaries to six House Officers in June, compelling them to work without pay, despite the association’s plea on July 18.

    He said: “It is grossly displeasing to the association that relatively arrears of January 2015, which was disbursed by the Federal Government to beneficiaries, are yet to be paid by our institution till date.

    “The association has observed with suspicion the inconsistent remittance of pension contributions of members and counterpart funding by the Federal Government to our pension fund administrators (PFAs).

    “We note with chagrin the marked disparity in taxation of members on IPPIS and GIFMIS platforms, plunging our members on GIFMIS platform into paying taxes twice above those on IPPIS platform. This is further corroded by the inability of our members to access their tax clearance.

    “Congress also frowns at the persistent neglect, lack of maintenance, failure to provide power and water to House Officers’ quarters, which has engendered difficult habitation, thereby hampering the efficiency in service delivery in the hospital.”

  • NDDC inaugurates 500-bed hostels for UUTH medical students

    NDDC inaugurates 500-bed hostels for UUTH medical students

    It was joyful moment for medical students of the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) and the people of Use Ikot Ebio in Akwa Ibom as the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) inaugurate 500 bed-space hostels for UUTH medical students.

    Speaking during the commissioning of the project, the NDDC’s Managing Director, Bassey Dan-Abia, said the NDDC had inaugurated nine hotels in different universities in the last one year.

    According to Dan-Abia, when the present board came in, the contract for the project was awarded in 2004 with 19 others but the board placed emphasis on the completion of all on-going projects in line with the Federal Government’s directive.

    The NDDC boss also said the University and the host community would enjoy 500 KVA transformers. Also donated by NDDC is a 275KVA generator.

    His words: “This project started some 10 years ago with 19 others. When this present board came in, we placed emphasis on the completion of existing projects. As I am talking to you, we have nine University hostels we have commissioned within the last one year.

    “We had to amend the original plan because we noticed that the University had no access road and perimeter fencing. The host community and the University will also enjoy 500KVA transformers.”

    Also the Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel commended NDDC for the gesture.

    Emmanule explained that the provision of the hostels accommodation will go a long way in improving the capacity of the teaching hospital to train more doctors.

    The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Moses Ekpo said the state government being an agent of growth and development would continue to partner agencies of government so that the needed development can come to the state.

    He said: “With this project, the capacity of the teaching hospital to train more doctors will improve. As a people we are grateful to the federal government for the gesture. Together, as agents of growth, we will continue to bring dividend of democracy to our people.”

    The governor also appealed to host communities not to encroach on the land they willingly give to institutions of government.

    In his speech, UUTH’s Chief Medical Director, Prof. Etete Peters urged NDDC to construct a link road from the hostel to the teaching hospital.

    Prof Peters said: “This is not the only project that has lasted a decade. At the UUTH, we also have projects that are scattered all around. Please, also help us to intervene so that we can see the quick completion of the project.”

  • Activities paralysed at Uyo Teaching Hospital

    Medical activities were paralysed yesterday at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital.

    Doctors at the hospital complied with the nationwide indefinite strike of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).

    Doctors refused to attend to patients.

    were seen unattended to by medical doctors during the visit of The Nation to UUTH in Akwa Ibom State.

    Some of the patients, who spoke with our correspondent, pleaded with the Federal Government to honour the 2009 agreement it willingly signed with the medical doctors.

    They urged the Federal Government to consider the demands of the medical doctors in the interest of the suffering masses that could afford the cost of medical treatment in private hospitals.

    President of the National Association of Residents Doctors (NARD) UUTH branch, Dr. Dolapo Shittu, urged patients to bear with the doctors during the period of the strike.

    Shittu said the union has exempted doctors operating private clinics and those in Non-Governmental Organisation from joining the strike for two week because of their love for patients.

    He urged the government to use the period to put machinery in motion to resolve the lingering crises in the health sector for the sake of patients.

    He said: “Already, we are creating public awareness about the strike, and we have allowed our doctors to work in private clinics and NGOs centres that are available in the state.

    “We appeal to our patients to bear with us and avail themselves of these facilities while the strike lasted.

    “It is our hope that the strike will not last long as we do not want our patients to suffer unnecessarily.”

    He, however, said that if after the two weeks there was no favourable responds from government, all doctors in the private clinics will join the indefinite strike.

    Also, the Chairman of UUTH Medical and Dental Consultant Association of Nigeria (MDCAN), Dr Emmanuel Inyangetok, said that the strike is painful as no doctor was happy over it.

    Inyanetok said that strike would have been averted if Government had shown commitment to their 24 points demand since two weeks ago when the union gave them ultimatum.

    He said the strike was to draw the attention of government to their demands and appealed for urgent resolution.

     

  • Award for UNIUYO CMD

    Award for UNIUYO CMD

    University students in West Africa have been urged to shun cultism and other social ills.

    The Chief Medical Director of the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH), Prof. Etete Peters, gave the advice yesterday when members of the West African Student Union Parliament (WASU) gave him the Kwame Nkrumah Exemplary Leadership award.

    Peters described WASU as a harbinger of freedom and quality education in West Africa.

    He said cultism has always posed great danger to students’ development, advising that it should be tackled effectively.

    The don advised the students union to conduct its activities honourably and responsibly .

  • ‘Tuberculosis kills 1.3m globally’

    The Chief Medical Director of the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH), Prof. Etete Peters, said yesterday over 1.3 million people have died from tuberculosis-related diseases worldwide in the last two years.

    Prof. Peters spoke in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, at the World Tuberculosis Day.

    He explained that in 2012, there were an estimated 8.6 million new cases with over 95 per cent of death in low and middle income countries.

    According to him, not less than one third of people living with HIV worldwide in the last two years were infected with TB bacteria.

    Peters, who is the president of the Nigeria Thoracic Society, said the tuberculosis burden in Nigeria was further compounded by the high HIV/AIDS prevalence of 4.6 per cent.

    He explained that the Federal Government developed a strategy to maximise collaboration between HIV and tuberculosis programmes and instituted a policy whereby tuberculosis patients were screened for HIV and HIV-positive patients screened for tuberculosis.

    With this policy, Peters said 58,942 tuberculosis patients (65.2 per cent registered in 2008) were screened for HIV last year, of which 14,698 (24.94 per cent) were found to be HIV-positive.

    Prof. Peters explained that poor communities and vulnerable groups are mostly affected by the disease.

    He stated that Nigeria is ranked 10th among the 22 high border TB countries in the world and the diseases is also among the top 3 causes of death among women in the country.

     

    ‘Leave Itsekiri people alone’

    By Musa Odoshimokhe

    An Itsekiri leader, Chief Ritalori Ogbebor, has urged the delegates of the national conference to call on the Egbema Radical Group, made up of the Ijaws, to desist from killing the Itsekiri people.

    At a briefing in lagos yesterday, Ogbebor bemoaned the fate of the Itsekiri, who have been under attack since the group blew up a pipeline in Idibi community on Robin creek.

    She said: “This same group threatened and killed so many Itsekiri at Ajameta, Gbokoda, Tubu, and Udo in Olero creek. This is the state of menace, threat and violence which the Itsekiri go through every day.”

    Ogbebor recalled that the Itsekiri/Ijaw crisis has become a recurring decimal in the crises rocking the country, noting that the Boko Haram insurgency started in similar fashion but the lack of attention to address the challenge has made it a monster for the country.

    “This is how the previous Warri crisis started and hence I am appealing to members of the national conference to address this matter because the delegates are eminent Nigerians.

    “We also want to ask the Ijaws, what do they want? It is mind boggling that the Ijaws who undoubtedly, unappreciative of God’s mercy and blessing that have enable them to rise to meteoric fame by unleashing genocidal war against Itsekiris have continue to their daily desire to wipe out the Itsekiri ethnic nationality,” she said.