From Okey Sampson, Umuahia
Abia State Governor Alex Otti has vowed to turn Abia State University Teaching Hospital (ABSUTH), Aba, into a centre of excellence.
This was disclosed by the state Commisioner for Health, Dr. Ngozi Okoronkwo while speaking during a seminar organised at the health facility.
“The Governor said ABSUTH must be a centre of excellence or it is closed down and he is striving to make it so. We are just cleaning up the place, Government was yet to start what it has in mind for the health facility.”
She said Otti was in a hurry to get results, adding that what government did in ABSUTH recently was emergency intervention for accreditation purposes which she was happy to announce the institution was granted accreditation for five years.
“Now, we have our budget for ABSUTH, and we are going to do a five-year strategic plan to take the place to where it should be.”
Okoronkwo disclosed that the present administration in the state has been paying doctors and other health workers their salary regularly since it came on board and promised to look into their salary arrears which was owed them by the previous administration, which run into over 30 months.
The Commisioner told her audience that God blessed Africa with abundant resources, but only needed the right leadership to harness them effectively.
Delivering a lecture earlier entitled, “Networking in the Life of an Academic”, a Nephrologist, Professor Ifeoma Ulasi of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH) Enugu, urged doctors to embrace networking to broaden their scope and knowledge base.
Stressing the numerous benefits in networking with other people especially those relevant to ones field and career.
Professor Ulasi also encouraged doctors to build online presence and engage in publications as to be known beyond their immediate environment.
The CMD of ABSUTH, Associates Professor John Chikezie commended Gov Otti for restoring critical infrastructure in the institution which he said, had made ABSUTH to bounce back to its days of glory.
He equally commended the Commissioner for Health for her commitment to the transformation of the institution and the entire health sector in the state.
The immediate-past Chairman of the Nigeria Medical Association, NMA, Abia State, Dr Chimezie Okwuonu, described the lecture series as a laudable innovation that would help place the institution on the global map of scholarly excellence.