Senate summons Adewole over state of teaching hospitals

The senate has summoned Isaac Adewole, minister of health, over the “poor quality” of teaching hospitals in the country.

The lawmakers invited Adewole to brief them on the state of the teaching hospitals and efforts to improve them.

This followed the introduction of a bill during Wednesday’s plenary by David Umaru from Niger east, on the state of the hospitals.

The lawmaker cited a media report which detailed “widespread cases of poor electricity supply, obsolete medical equipment and decayed infrastructure” in the hospitals.

He said the situation has made it extremely difficult for the teaching hospitals to provide healthcare to patients with complex ailments such as cancer and kidney failure.

He added that apart from providing healthcare, the hospitals were also expected to train medical personnel in the country.

According to him, several stakeholders in the health sector have also raised alarm on the declining quality of services in the teaching hospitals “amidst cases of overcrowding and lack of adequate funding and personnel”.

“Most teaching hospitals in Nigeria have been overstretched forcing patients to sleep on bare floors, plastic mats and other unhygienic conditions that put them at the risk of contracting other ailment,” he said.

“(Also) patients with terminal illnesses such as cancer and kidney failure are now compelled to travel long distances to access chemotherapy and dialysis at very high cost due to the absence of the requisite medical equipment for such services within their vicinity.”

Robert Boroffice from Ondo north called for the establishment of a teaching hospital commission.

He said: “The quality of teaching hospitals we had in 1971 is different from today. We need a teaching hospital commission under the ministry of health. Issues of funding, quality of services and professionalism can be resolved.”

Apart from summoning the minister, the senate also urged the federal government to adopt a policy on subsidizing the medical expenses of patients with terminal ailments.

The lawmakers also called for the adoption of short and long term measures that will “holistically address the challenges confronting our teaching hospitals.”