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By Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin
The Edo State Healthcare Regulation and Monitoring Agency (EDOHERMA) has announced a fresh enforcement exercise targeting health facilities that have resumed operations despite being sealed for regulatory violations, warning that defiant operators risk arrest and prosecution.
The Chief Executive Officer of the agency, Adesuwa Urhoghide-Edigin, disclosed this in an interview, saying the exercise would commence before the end of the week as part of efforts to strengthen healthcare regulation and protect patients across the state.
She explained that facilities are usually given verbal and written warnings before closure, but that operators who disregard sealing orders face fines, arrest and prosecution.
Facilities providing services outside their approved scope could also face immediate closure.
Citing an instance, she said the agency had discovered a maternity centre that allegedly administered a blood transfusion to a male patient, describing the action as a serious breach of its authorised scope of practice.
Urhoghide-Edigin also announced that EDOHERMA was conducting a comprehensive revalidation of health facilities previously registered with the state Ministry of Health to ensure that their equipment, personnel and services met the required standards.
She said the exercise would cover all 18 local government areas, with monitoring teams expected to visit facilities at least twice a year.
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The agency is also intensifying its anti-quackery campaign by scrutinising the qualifications and professional licences of healthcare practitioners.
To protect residents, she urged the public to use EDOHERMA’s website to verify registered health facilities and their approved services before seeking medical attention.
She warned that facilities that failed to complete the 2026 revalidation exercise would lose their special status as previously registered centres and would have to apply afresh in 2027.
Beyond enforcement, the agency is strengthening emergency preparedness, infection prevention and control, equipment inspections and patient-experience monitoring.
It is also collaborating with relevant emergency response agencies to improve the readiness of healthcare facilities for disasters and public health emergencies.
Urhoghide-Edigin said the agency’s activities were aimed at promoting accountability, enforcing professional standards and safeguarding patients.
She urged healthcare providers and residents to support EDOHERMA’s efforts to improve the quality, safety and reliability of healthcare delivery across Edo State.
