By Ogenyi Ogenyi,Uyo
Akwa Ibom Government has said that it would commence the state Health Insurance Scheme before the end of this year.
It has also concluded plans to establish a Renal Treatment Centre alongside the Ibom Specialist Hospital inorder to arrest the growing cases of renal diseases in the state next year.
Governor Umo Eno who announced this when he received the management of the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital,UUTH, in his office yesterday also said he would fulfill his campaign promise of establishing an Ambulance Service in both the rural and urban parts of the state.
Eno said work at the State University Teaching Hospital in ONNA Local Council has been intensified and meant to compliment and reduce traffic at UUTH adding that capacity building in the health sector would receive primal consideration.
“On Health Insurance I believe we have gone far, we trust that in the next one month we will kick start health insurance scheme in the State.
“The State is also preparing to establish its Teaching Hospital and we are working very hard to see if we can give you respite by having two Teaching Hospitals in the State.
“The beauty of it is that it will complement the services of UUTH and since Doctors are not many you will be the ones to consult for us and we will always come calling for your assistance to help us.” The Governor said.
He said his administration has improved in healthcare services by revamping the primary healthcare sector for efficiency, reduce traffic on the secondary and tertiary healthcare institutions across the State, expressing the determination of his administration to dot the landscape of every local government with a model healthcare institution before the end of his tenure.
Eno appealed to companies and donor agencies to help fast track establishment of model healthcare institutions across the State.
The Governor described as alarming, the volume of traffic to the UUTH by patients and traced the upsurge to the institution being the only facility that provide services at the tertiary level to the public but added that the state government has been unrelenting in its assistance to enable it cater for the health needs of the people of the State.
Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Prof Ememabasi Bassey had earlier commended the Governor for the priority given to the health sector in his A.R.I.S.E. Agenda and stated the willingness of UUTH to partner with the state in its quest to deliver on the agenda.
Bassey explained that the institution came into existence as a specialist Hospital in 1996, got gazetted as UUTH in 1998 and has since grown to become a training ground for high level medical manpower in the rank of Resident Doctors, House Officers and Medical Interns and is on the verge of establishing a College of Nursing Science to address manpower needs.
The Medical Director however listed its challenges to include dearth of infrastructure, power generation, inadequate manpower, poor funding, among others, explaining that despite the setbacks UUTH has recorded tremendous strides in the area of renovation and construction of new buildings and Services delivery.
He proposed the commencement of Hip And Knee Replacement Surgeries, In-vitro Fertilization treatment as well as Renal Transplant Services and called on the State government to come to the aid of the hospital by initiating and completing a signature project.
