Facilities up, attitude down: Mixed verdict on South-South General Hospitals
Stakeholders in healthcare have expressed mixed reactions over the state of public hospitals in South-South zone, saying that while hospital facilities are being revamped, the attitude and services of health providers are yet to improve.
The stakeholders made the remark while responding on the state of the general hospitals conducted in Cross River, Rivers and Akwa Ibom states.
They urged the government not to relent in ensuring that medical equipment were available and in good condition to enable the hospitals conduct proper diagnoses.
The respondents, who frowned at poor services being rendered to the patients, urged the health providers to improve.
In Cross River, a Civil Servant, Ms Ekpenyong Williams, who was treated in the General Hospital, Calabar, noted improvements in the hospital facilities compared with previous years.
“A few weeks ago, I was here with other women for a fistula repair procedure, which was a collaboration between a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) and the state government, and everything went well,” she said
She, however, added that while patronage of the general hospital had increased, there should also be an improvement in the attitude to work by the hospital staff.
Williams noted some level of nonchalance, carelessness and lack of integrity by some officials and urged them to see the work as a call to save lives
She said with better attitude to work and more facilities, the General Hospital, Calabar should be able to compete with other hospitals in the city in providing secondary healthcare.
Dr Henry Ayuk, Cross River Commissioner for Health, said Gov. Bassey Otu had intensified efforts to transform healthcare delivery in the state with the approval of funds for the renovation of general hospitals.
Ayuk said the state had 14 functional general and cottage hospitals, adding that the remaining four of the 18 Local Government Areas (LGAs) had theirs under construction or renovation.
He said the administration had started building a general hospital in Ikom LGA from the scratch and approved funds for civil works at the abandoned general hospital complexes in Akpabuyo, Boki and Etung LGAs.
He said funds were also approved for the renovation of General Hospital, Ukem, in Odukpani LGA, and the Cottage Hospital, Oban, in Akamkpa LGA while other general hospitals were functional but needed remedial care.
Ayuk said for the general hospitals to be more effective, the governor increased fiscal allocation to the health sector by over 100 percent, lifted the embargo on employment and recruited over 2,000 health workers.
He said that the government revitalised over 100 Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) across the state in a bid to rebuild healthcare infrastructure at all levels.
He added that the governor also approved a 100 per cent salary increase for doctors, enhanced allowances for health personnel and established the Hospital Management Board.
Ayuk assured that healthcare facilities across the state would eventually benefit from the government’s reform agenda, stressing that the ultimate goal was to build an efficient and accessible healthcare system to meet residents’ health needs.
In Rivers, the state government had commenced the upgrade of general and zonal hospitals as part of efforts to expand access to quality trauma, surgical and neonatal healthcare services across the state.
There are 18 registered secondary healthcare facilities in Rivers, comprising general and zonal hospitals spread across the state’s 23 Local Government Areas (LGA).
In his remarks, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr Onwuka Nzeshi, said Gov. Siminalayi Fubara embarked on major projects, ensuring the completion of the 105-bed Bori Zonal Hospital.
He added that the 105-bed Ahoada, Omoku, and Degema Zonal Hospitals had been transformed into centres of excellence.
‘’In addition, the administration has completed the reconstruction of the Neuropsychiatric Hospital and built a brand new General Hospital beside it at Rumuigbo in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area,” he said.
Dr Adaeze Oreh, the state Commissioner for Health, said most of the zonal and general hospitals currently under construction were nearing completion.
She made the remark in her speech to journalists, saying that the facilities were expected to be ready for inauguration before the end of the second quarter of 2026.
The commissioner added that the projects were landmark achievements of the present administration of Gov. Siminalayi Fubara, who had taken critical steps to reposition the health sector.
Dr Ngozi Okafor, a Public Health expert and lecturer at the University of Port Harcourt (UPTH}, said the hospital has recorded significant progress in specialised healthcare services, training and medical research over the years.
Okafor, however, said the growing patient population had placed pressure on available facilities and personnel.
“The management should continue expanding infrastructure and recruit more healthcare workers to meet rising demand,” she added.
Dr. Timi George, a Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon at UPTH, said the hospital had maintained standards despite challenges facing Nigeria’s healthcare sector as it continued providing healthcare services, undertaking research and training future medical professionals.
George acknowledged that manpower shortages remained a concern due to the migration of healthcare workers to other countries, saying, ”the shortages increase the workload on available staff and can affect service delivery if not adequately addressed.”
The medical professional called for improved welfare packages and increased government investment in the health sector.
Mrs Blessing Wobo, a retired nurse and member of the Nigeria Health Watch monitoring group, said the hospital required major facility upgrades to compete favourably with hospitals abroad.
She urged the management to improve the maintenance of obstetrics facilities, enhance diagnostic services, give greater attention to customer relations and complaint-resolution mechanisms, and strengthen sanitation across the hospital.
“Patients expect a clean and comfortable environment alongside quality medical care,” she added.
On his part, Mr Christopher Mane, a patient receiving treatment at UPTH, expressed dissatisfaction at the pace of service delivery by some healthcare workers and long waiting times before consultations and diagnostic procedures.
He said that although the hospital had qualified medical practitioners across various specialties, there appeared to be a general lack of urgency in patient care.
“The doctors are qualified and professionals, but the treatment procedures and the attitude of some nurses towards patients remain a concern,” he said.
In Akwa Ibom, a patient, Mr Kenneth Sam, called on the management of the Immanuel General Hospital to employ more doctors, nurses and workers to match the influx of patients in the hospital.
He urged the government to increase the salaries of doctors and nurses in the General Hospital in order to discourage them from working in private hospitals.
Mrs Affiong Bassey, a patient, frowned at lack of free medical supplies at the hospital, saying that patients buy even needles, gloves and syringes amongst others.
Bassey added that if public electricity supply went off, the hospital, sometimes, might not have fuel to run its generator.
She said that the hospital had been providing poor services due to insufficient doctors and nurses and called for employment of more medical personnel.
Another patient, Mr Edward Johnson, said that the X-ray machine in the hospital was currently not functional and the staff were inadequate as some consultants had been redeployed.
However, at the general hospitals in Ituk Mbang and Ikot Ekpene, patients applauded the state government for its investment in the health sector, saying it had improved the healthcare quality.
Miss Agnes Akpan, a former patient at Ituk Mbang General Hospital in Uruan LGA, said the facility was in top shape and the medical personnel attended to her professionally.
“They have good facilities, good doctors, nurses and they attended to me promptly without any delay; charges are moderate and uniform across the general hospitals in Akwa Ibom, which is good for us,” she said.
Akpan appealed to the government to pay more attention to the provision of drugs and the general welfare of the health workers in the hospital.
On his part Mr Augustine Jimmy, who was once admitted at Ikot Ekpene General Hospital, commended the conducive nature of the facility, explaining that it was recently renovated by the state government.
“The recent improvement in the hospital by the state government has brought about fresh breath for the patients; government should employ more health personnel to meet the needs of the patients,” he said.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Ekem John, said the state government recently declared a state of emergency in the health sector, following a comprehensive review of the healthcare development roadmap.
He said that the move was designed to accelerate reforms and deliver more efficient healthcare services to the citizens.
He added that the government recruited 2, 854 healthcare professionals to address the shortage of personnel across all general hospitals, built and inaugurated ”a-state-of-art” general hospital at Ikot Akpankuk, Ukanafun LGA.
“The State Government has undertaken several projects aimed at improving general hospitals and healthcare services in Akwa Ibom State under his ARISE Agenda.
“The government ensured the completion and commissioning of the general hospital in Ukanafun, a project that had reportedly been abandoned for many years.
“The hospital was recently equipped with modern facilities, access roads, wards, laboratories, theatres, and staff accommodation,” John said.