Health Minister Sets To Inaugurate FG Projects On Maiden Visit To Anambra

The minister of health and social welfare, Professor Muhammad Pate, representing the presidency, is set to visit the permanent site of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, NAUTH, Nnewi, Anambra State, for the inauguration of federal government projects and commemoration of the one-year anniversary of the commissioning of the permanent site of the hospital.

Disclosing this to journalists during a press conference in the hospital, the Chief Medical Director of NAUTH, Professor Joseph Ugboaja who appreciated President Tinubu for working towards improving the health sector, lauded the Federal Ministry of Health for its unyielding support and dedication to the improvement of healthcare infrastructure in the country.

He noted that the presence of the esteemed health minister, whose maiden visit marks an important milestone for NAUTH, signifies the government’s commitment to ensuring quality healthcare services are accessible to all Nigerians.

“The journey of our permanent site is a journey of faith. You cannot transform a system without vision. When I came on board as the CMD in September 2021, I pulled my team together to develop a vision to rank among the top three hospitals in Nigeria with at least 2,000 bed capacity by the year, 2030.

“We had 9 strategic pillars towards achieving our vision: Strong corporate governance structure, infrastructural development, use of State-of-the-Art & modern equipment, strategic human resource management, robust financial management system, staff welfare and motivation, partnership and collaborations, use of ICT and E-Medicine and research and Innovations.

“The growth trajectory of the hospital so far is thus, an act of commitment, innovation and excellence while envisioning the lofty future of the hospital. Through impeccable teamwork and unwavering dedication to our patients, we have successfully enhanced the quality of our services to meet international standards.

“We have moved all the clinical services to the permanent site. Administration, including my office and ancillary services, will be the last to be relocated. Clinical wards formerly run at the temporary site have been relocated to their respective buildings with a full complement of modern support facilities.

“While we are developing the permanent site at a rapid speed, we made a deliberate decision to ensure a happy workforce by ensuring that their needs were met. Promotion of deserving workers was made, and those who applied for regularisation of status were promptly granted. We ensure that NAUTH will not experience work disruption as a result of not meeting the worker’s entitlement,” Ugboaja added.

Professor Ugboaja expressed his optimism for the future. He reiterated NAUTH’s commitment to providing excellent healthcare services, continuously improving infrastructure, and fostering collaborations that contribute to the overall well-being of the community.

The esteemed CMD thanked all stakeholders for their invaluable contributions, especially Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, the governor of Anambra State, Igwe Kenneth Onyeneke Orizu III, the Traditional Ruler of Nnewi Town; Dr. Cletus Madubugwu, Engr Arthur Eze, Chief Innocent Chukwuma, Senator Patrick Ubah and Sir Emeka Offor. He noted that their support remains essential as NAUTH strives for excellence in healthcare delivery as they will be honoured during the minister’s visit on Wednesday, July 17,2024.

Ugboaja who disclosed that Liquefied Natural Gas, LNG is setting up 2 capacity oxygen plants in the hospital for production of about 96 cylinders per day, also praised the LNG for its collaboration with the hospital recognizing their strong partnership in improving healthcare delivery.

The CMD stated that the minister who is intervening in hospitals by attracting funding will perform the groundbreaking ceremony of the Regional Radio-Diagnostic Centre located in the hospital, a multi-billion naira project which comes with modern features such as MRI, CT Scan, PET Scan, Ultrasound among others, to deliver high tech diagnostic treatments, and designed to boost the public health of Nigerians. He added that with the unwavering support of the federal government and the dedication of its stakeholders, NAUTH is poised to continue its mission of providing exceptional healthcare to all those in need.

“The minister’s visit means a whole lot to us and he is coming to commission projects. Since coming on board, we are seeing things that we have not seen before in the public health sector, he has attracted a whole lot of funding to the public health sector.

“A whole lot of funding is needed in the public health sector. We must infuse massively into the health system to tackle the japa syndrome. Anything you do for the hospital, you do it for the patients as the patients trust their lives on us.

“Japa syndrome is a national issue and quite an unfortunate one at that, and it is being discussed at the national level, we are trying to tackle it. What is driving the japa syndrome is largely outside the hospital.

“It’s at the level of retraining the health workers with specialised skills, train the person so that he becomes eligible and then give him the condition that will make him to stay. You must train them and give them the condition that will not make to leave,” Ugboaja said.

The CMD further stated the minister who will officiate the ceremony on Wednesday July 17, is expected to be in Anambra on Tuesday July 16 for facility tour at NAUTH, courtesy visit to the governor and some stakeholders.