Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, the governor of Kwara state, has voiced dismay over the 170 medical professionals who have left their state government jobs in the last three months.
The governor made the point that the state government cannot manage healthcare on its own during the launching of a fresh new N350 million medical centre in the General Hospital in Offa town, Offa local government area, of Kwara state, on Saturday. The Offa Metropolitan Club, a local organisation, constructed the facility (OMC).
“Over the last three months, we have lost 170 doctors in the state service. That is one of the challenges you have; getting qualified doctors and pay them right. The rate we are losing doctors and midwives is haemorrhaging. Most of those medical doctors are still behind, mostly for family ties. The issue of patriotism has gone off the wind. It’s not just Kwara losing doctors. So many states are losing doctors. For us in Kwara, we are losing to the federal institutions and teaching hospitals, while others are losing to Lagos, Abuja, and Lagos is losing to UK, America, Europe and so on. It’s a huge brain drain. That is one of the key major challenges that you have. Two major challenges here; one, the personnel, two, the equipment”, he stated.
The governor, thrilled by the community’s enthusiasm, pledged the state’s backing for the initiative’s intended public good.
There will be some strain on the government building because of this renovation, he continued; “As a government, we cannot come in and see an institution like this and see our own dilapidated.”
“It puts pressure on us to also make sure we do well on the government side”, he remarked.
Sarah Alade, president of the OMC and Special Adviser to the President on Finance and Economy, also spoke, emphasising the need for community-based cooperation to address the nation’s healthcare system’s current problems.
Alade opined that the existing fiscal realities on the ground, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the massive exodus of healthcare workers would all act to slow the pace of change in the medical industry in the near future.
A former acting governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Sarah Alade, said that the situation’s cumulative effect had shown that the government could not do it alone. She said this development led the club to conceive of the idea of building a medical facility to complement the government’s efforts in the health sector.
Alade stated that the medical centre would be built to meet the group’s promise to improve the quality of healthcare services in the Offa community and the surrounding areas and that it would feature advanced medical screening and diagnostic equipment.
The OMC president said the club had started a health trust fund so that people of all socioeconomic backgrounds could use the centre. She urged wealthy people to contribute to gain access to the fund through the national health insurance programme.
Dr Funsho Oladipo, chairman of the club’s board of directors (BOT), was represented by Dr Layi Bello, who stated the idea for the hospital came from a desire to improve access to quality healthcare in Offa and the surrounding community.
“I believe that this project will serve as a template that will be replicated across Kwara state, which will not only provide health care services to the people of the communities but also create jobs. At the inception of this project, the OMC Medical Center planning committee members had the vision to build a one-of-a-kind medical centre with state-of-the-art equipment to ensure that the people of Offa and its environs benefit immeasurably. This centre has been designed to provide comprehensive quality medical services to complement the services already being provided by the Offa General Hospital. We involved many experts to ensure we delivered nothing but the best to our people, and the result is what we see before us today.
“Following today’s commissioning, the centre will begin providing top-class diagnostic services such as haematology, chemical pathology, microbiology, and histopathology. The services delivered within the centre will be expanded to provide diagnostic imaging, beginning with digital X-ray and progressing to CT scan and, finally, MRI. This is to ensure that, in addition to the assistance these services will provide to the people of Offa and its surroundings, we will increase the availability of advanced imaging in Kwara state.
“The centre will also provide clinical services, beginning with primary and secondary care and soon progressing to a tertiary level centre to cater for varying healthcare needs of the community and its adjacent towns and cities.
“The centre will include a pharmacy that serves patients from inside and outside our community.”
“The OMC’s efforts to establish this Medical Center align with those of the Kwara state Ministry of Health, which has underlined the importance of increasing the well-being of the people of Kwara state by assuring access to quality health care services and deepening Universal Health Care (UHC).
“We are committed to supporting the government’s efforts to reduce maternal and child mortality rates, providing urgent care services for emergencies and eliminating Malaria and other diseases, which we hope wIll be achieved following the commissioning of this project.
“As a member of the OMC Medical Center Planning Committee, I am immensely proud and honoured that, as a team, we have demonstrated that when determination and the desire to succeed are there, anything is possible. And, by the help of God, we shall continue to do more for the benefit of the people of Offa and its surroundings”.