A’Ibom plans 10 dialysis centres in federal constituencies
The Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Umo Eno, has approved the establishment of 10 new dialysis centres, one for each of the 10 federal constituencies in the state.
He also directed the immediate commencement of recruitment and training of professionals to meet the manpower needs of the dialysis centres.
Eno announced on Monday at the Immanuel General Hospital, Eket, while inaugurating the Enoch and Folu Adeboye Dialysis Centre donated by the Redeemed Christian Church of God.
The governor, who noted that the proposed centres would be fully operational by June 2024, directed the deployment of relevant personnel from the state hospitals to the inaugurated dialysis centre to ensure that the facility is not underutilised due to lack of personnel.
He said, “I am directing the Commissioner for Health and critical stakeholders of the state to ensure that they provide a dialysis centre in each federal constituency and guarantee me that between now and June 2024, those dialysis centres will be available and functional.
“I have already approved the deployment of staff to the centre. I had given the Commissioner for Health approval to look for qualified people to come and work here. I have also directed the Head of the Civil Service to work with the Ministry of Health and the Civil Service Commission to absorb them as quickly as possible so that we can have permanent staff here. We don’t want to have equipment here, yet we don’t have the manpower to operate them.”
While making a case for aggressive sensitisation on kidney-related ailments and measures to checkmate their occurrence, the governor directed the Ministry of Health to collaborate with the Ministry of Information and Office of the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor to undertake the sensitisation.
He hailed the gesture of Pastor Enoch Adeboye and his wife Folu, in partnering government through the church’s humanitarian arm, ‘His Love Foundation’, to provide medical services to Akwa Ibom people, especially those hopelessly plagued with ravaging kidney diseases.
Eno, who described the dialysis facility as a critical healthcare intervention, urged other religious and business organisations to emulate such robust corporate social responsibility gesture to partner with the government in developing the state.
He added, “The huge investment here today speaks loudly to the fact that the Government needs to partner with the other layers of society to ensure that we advance development across sectors of our economy.
“This is pioneered by the church, and I also expect all of the people doing business in Akwa Ibom to rise to the occasion and partner with the State Government to provide facilities that will stand in their names and show that they are residents and doing business around these communities.
“Don’t give us money, but you can do what you have seen here today. We will give you the enabling environment, we will do the building, and we will provide the staff if you partner with us in your way.
“For me, this is a clarion call on all churches to come forth and be inspired by what we have seen here today. It is a step in the very right direction.”
Earlier, the RCCG Intercontinental Overseer, Christian Social Responsibility, Pastor Idowu Iluyomade, said that the establishment of the centre was driven by a passion for humanity and the need to bring help to people afflicted by the scourge of kidney diseases
He disclosed that “His Love Foundation” set up 12 dialysis centres across Nigeria and was pleased to set the 13th in Eket, Akwa Ibom State, among other interventions.
The state Commissioner for Health, Prof Augustine Umoh, while harping on the imperative of the intervention explained that dialysis is one of the best ways of managing kidney failure, adding that the Government-RCCG partnership was laudable.
