Iwo General Hospital: Osun Govt Denies Staff Shortage Claims

Osun State government on Friday described as unfounded, and untrue, assertions that the General Hospital, Iwo is grappling with staff shortage.

Dr. Akindele Adekunle, who is Governor Ademola Adeleke’s Special Adviser on Public Health, asserted in a statement he issued in Osogbo and made available to Team@orientactualmags.com that the hospital in question is not battling staff shortage as claimed while disclosing plans to improve infrastructure at healthcare facilities in the state.

‘Our attention has been drawn to an advocacy by a group, THURIST-Nigeria, on the state of medical personnel at Iwo General Hospital. While we do not necessarily seek to question the validity or otherwise of the group’s position, we intend to state for the public knowledge that the hospital has the requisite medical personnel to deliver on its mandate.

As a matter of routine, a doctor who has been providing medical service at the hospital for years was recently transferred out, and as a replacement, two doctors were deployed there. One of the two doctors transferred to Iwo General Hospital is a Level-17 officer with deep experience in medical service delivery, which underscores the importance that this administration attaches  to the hospital.

Similarly, two nurses were transferred out of Iwo General Hospital, and were as well immediately replaced. We have to emphasize that transfer of personnel is a usual occurrence in every government set up as it is a mean to ensure that the people get the services for which are paid for from the state’s purse.

It is important to note the significant challenge posed by the increasing migration of medical personnel from Nigeria to overseas, which explains why President Bola Tinubu recently signed a law extending the retirement age of medical personnel by five more years to enable the country, Osun inclusive, to utilize the available human resources in the health sector to deliver the health needs of the people. 

Notwithstanding this reality, Osun State is exploring the option of replacing some personnel on a need basis. This is an ongoing effort and we want to assure the public that it will draw more human capitals for the delivery of healthcare services.

In continuation of ongoing efforts to improve infrastructure at our healthcare facilities, I am pleased to inform the public, particularly Osun people, that Governor Ademola Adeleke has approved the total overhauling of the physical infrastructure at secondary health facilities including Iwo General Hospital.

Just like it was done with the PHCs, Iwo General Hospital and others will be rehabilitated, we will be upscaling not just the infrastructure to modern standards but also equipping them with some state-of-the-art tools to aid effective healthcare delivery. Bill of quantities (BOQ) and other professional assessments had been undertaken and in a matter of weeks, work will commence at the various secondary facilities scheduled for rehabilitation.

This goes to show the efforts that this administration is putting in place to deliver qualitative healthcare and we urge the public to bear with us. The rot inherited by this administration in the health sector is enormous and gradually, we’re taking pragmatic steps to resolve them and ensure that the healthcare needs of the people are met’ the statement said-Team@orientactualmags.com  Do you have any information you wish to share with us? Do you want us to cover your event or programme? Kindly send SMS to 08059100286, 09094171980 or get in touch via orientactualmag@gmail.com.  Thank you