Arrangements have reached advanced stage for the unveiling of an ultramodern obstetrics fistula centre at the General Hospital Calabar in Cross River State, southern Nigeria. The ultramodern fistula centre, which is situated within the state government’s owned General Hospital in Calabar, is funded by the European Union (EU) through the United Nations (UN) Spotlight Initiative.
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The centre has been designed to scale-up services at the hospital and enhance the surgical management of obstetric fistula including complications arising from the debilitating condition, which according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), affects between 50,000 to 100,000 women during pregnancy or childbirth.
The UNFPA indicated that Nigeria alone accounts for 40 percent of fistula cases worldwide with more than 400,000 women unable to have access to surgical treatment due to factors such as stigmatisation and funding.
As such, to enable affected women have access to surgical treatment for the preventable and treatable condition, the UNFPA is supporting institutions in Nigeria to scale up health facilities by funding the construction and equipping of repair centres such as the one in Calabar.
To assess the quality and pace of construction work at the designated site, the Cross River State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Henry Ayuk undertook an on-the-spot inspection tour of the proposed fistula centre.
Dr. Ayuk, who was visibly excited and satisfied with the level of construction at the site, conveyed Governor Bassey Otu’s appreciation to the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative for funding what he described as an important project in Cross River State.
After touring the facility, the commissioner said, “I am particularly delighted that this project will be ready for commissioning by the governor of Cross River State, Senator Bassey Otu in the next one week. This project was signed and started by me and I count it as one of our hundred days in office achievement. I appreciate the effort of our partners the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative, the Ministry of Women Affairs, site engineers and all those responsible in pushing this project to this level. I encourage everyone to put in more effort in the completion of this project, which would be a great feat for Cross River State health sector and Nigeria at large,” he added.
Concerning the facility, the Chief Medical Director of the General Hospital Calabar, Dr. Kenneth Takim was excited that the hospital would be hosting the ultramodern obstetrics fistula centre and commended Governor Otu, the health commissioner and the international partners for scaling up the institution’s healthcare services.
Dr Takim said “when completed, the fistula centre would open another channel of service for our women. We are also expecting stock in a couple of days. This will really help in tackling fistula and gender based issues in Cross River State.”
The centre, which will also provide comprehensive treatment and care for survivors of gender based violence, is expected to be commissioned by Governor Bassey Otu on Tuesday, November 14th, 2023 at ten o’ clock in the morning.
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