Warri Central Hospital, Others In Precarious State –Comrade Agberen

By Daniel Dafe

Comr.(Amb.) Derrick Oritsematosan Agberen, Coordinator, Initiative For Social Rights Concerns And Advancement (ISRCA) AKA “No Justice, No Peace,” has said that the Warri Central Hospital, and others in Delta State were in a precarious state.

He said this in a statement made available to Oasis Magazine on Sunday.

He added: “How do I explain to her dear Governor; Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, the very painful reality that patients in a lot of public hospitals in Delta State now face, coupled with alleged cases of patients lying on the bare floor or with mats, to get treatments due to lack of bed spaces in the various wards and are most times abandoned? Also, that families of patients under admission in Government hospitals contribute money to buy fuel in order to power their generators, and even purchase surgical equipment outside its facilities?”

According to him, on November 12, 2024, he was at the emergency session of the Warri Central Hospital to see a patient, where two accident victims were rushed in saying that “unfortunately, they were both husband and wife.”

“They were hit by a tricycle rider on their way to church, just immediately after they came down from another tricycle at the front of their church. Tragically, they gave up the ghost not because the accident was fatal neither did they sustain life-threatening injuries but because they were unintentionally neglected by the doctors and nurses on duty.

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“Moments later, the children to the deceased parents came in, this time, descending heavily on the doctors and nurses in the emergency unit, for giving improper/diverted attention which contributed to the death of their parents. Few minutes later, after we were able to dispatch the deceased family, we held loud voices of family members crying to a patient, admitted in the ward who had just died. It was alleged that the doctor had removed the oxygen from their mum, to also survive another patient, which within that short period led to the death of their mother. Unfortunately, same patient who the doctor had passed the oxygen to save his life, also gave up the ghost.”

“Pathetically, Warri Central Hospital’s mortuary is now more active than its life-saving units, indicating a blatant disregard for human life. Notably, manpower shortages in Government Central Hospitals across the States limit the effectiveness of health services and performance under the Delta State Government’s Ministry of Health,” he said.

The rights activist noted: “Delta State has had the distinction of being governed by two medical doctors, Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan and Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, since the inception of the Fourth Republic in 1999. Given their medical background, it was expected that healthcare would be a priority, and indeed, their combined efforts have established a strong healthcare delivery system in the state, initiated under the Ibori administration.”

Furthermore, he said: “Also commending the efforts of previous administrations in providing services to patients, which it continues to sustain. Shortly after assuming office in 2007, Dr. Uduaghan launched the Free Maternal Health Programme, initially covering ante-natal care, deliveries, caesarean sections, and essential laboratory tests, later expanding to include management of ectopic pregnancies, abortion complications, and blood transfusion services. Although, it was Gov. Ibori who first introduced the state’s free healthcare programme for pregnant women and children under five in 2001.

“Delta State’s free healthcare initiative for pregnant women and children under five has achieved notable progress, including the procurement of nine oxygen concentrators for strategic hospitals, so why do patients requiring oxygen still face shortages? Furthermore, I cannot say that the previous and current administrations have made significant efforts to transform and improve government hospitals across the state, until politicians in the state begin patronizing these hospitals instead of seeking medical care abroad.”

Continuing, he said “the health of a people plays out significantly in their productivity and thus their wealth and the Ministry of Health need to prioritize human resource management, massively, recruiting more health workers in strengthening the workforce and policies/strategies for the achievement of the State Government’s goals and objectives in Health related matters.”

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Following the rapid increase in patients patronizing her health facilities and benefiting from its programs, he opined that several health personnel are urgently required to improve services.

“The rising death toll of patients under admission due to doctors’/health workers’ negligence resulting from manpower shortages is worrisome. Undoubtedly, health worker shortages directly endanger the lives of people in that location,” Agberen opined.

“Furthermore, I urge the Delta State Governor, through the Ministry of Health, to immediately open a recruitment portal for the massive employment of health workers, enhancing services in State Government Hospitals across the State. Since this administration is passionate about transforming the health sector, it should prioritize employing qualified and numerous health workers to achieve its objectives. The Delta State Government needs to accurately assess the statistics amidst the increasing death rates at Warri Central Hospital and other State Government’s Health facilities. It’s alarming that two or four doctors are shouldering the responsibilities of over fifty, the death rates of patients on daily basis will likely worsen,” he concluded.