Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, has approved renovation and equipping of 11 additional general hospitals across the state as part of efforts to improve healthcare delivery in the state.
The Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Dr Oyebanji Filani, said the new development would make all the 21 general hospitals in the state attractive and properly equipped to address the healthcare needs of Ekiti people.
Filani said already 10 general hospitals had already been renovated by the previous administration of Dr Kayode Fayemi.
The commissioner spoke on Thursday at Omuo Ekiti during an inspection tour of general hospitals Ijan, Ijesa Isu, Omuo, Ilupeju/Itapa, Ayede and Ifaki to ascertain their state, areas of need and also to encourage staff members.
He called on Ekiti people to go for routine medical checks and present themselves at the state healthcare facilities for treatment early.
Filani said, “We have 21 general hospitals. Two years ago during the time of Dr Kayode Fayemi, we renovated 10 of them. The beauty of continuity is to recognise that even though you have done some, you have to continue with the rest.
“Governor Oyebanji, having taken the mantle of leadership, has approved that the remaining facilities be renovated. General Hospital, Ijan Ekiti is one of those that will be renovated; we have already started there. The general hospitals at Ijesa Isu, Iye Ekiti, Ayede and a host of other of our facilities will be renovated and completed within the next four to six months”.
He said the Oyebanji administration had taken steps to holistically address the issue of staff mobility within the health sector in the state with pay parity and improvement cum payment of other necessary allowances.
He said more doctors would soon be recruited, saying, “Only recently, we opened up space for doctors in the state. In the past, we only got two or three persons who applied for such, but in the last one, 19 doctors applied. So, it’s a sense that we are moving in the right direction.
“The way forward is to be able to address all these issues and our goal is to absorb all of them so that we can distribute them to as many of our facilities as possible”, Filani said.
The medical expert, who hailed health workers in the state for commitment to duty, however, said maintenance of equipment was necessary, saying, “I will encourage all health workers across the entire state to ensure that all the infrastructure and equipment are properly maintained so that they can serve our people here in Ekiti”.
The commissioner called on Ekiti people to take prevention and treatment seriously, saying, “We encourage people as much as possible to come out and use our facilities.
“At our primary healthcare centres, all services are free; delivery is free, ante-natal is free, routine immunisation is free, HIV/AIDS treatment is free, tuberculosis treatment is free and malaria treatment is free in Ekiti State.
“There are some specific services that are completely covered, paid for by the governor. So we like to encourage people to go to our 177 facilities to be able to access the services and where there is a need for referral, the personnel there will do that”, he said.
