By Ifiok ITIABA- Uyo
The Akwa Ibom State government has been commended by the people of the state over the remodeling of Etinan General Hospital. The people gave the commendations following the maiden edition of the Akwa Ibom Citizens' Tour, last Saturday.
According to one of the promoters of the tour, Borono Bassey, the initiative, which is strictly citizen-participatory, is born out of the need to promote citizen participation in governance, adding that no government can function effectively without active citizen participation.
Mr. Bassey made this known yesterday during the maiden edition of the tour where over 28 citizens of the state from different career paths and local government descent visited the Hospital to access the state of healthcare facilities available to people in the Etinan axis of the state.
He stressed that the state has been given too much negative publicity in the media leading to lost of confidence by the people, adding the essence of the tour is to afford the citizens the opportunity to “see the state by themselves and tell the stories in their own way”.
While enumerating the benefits of the initiative, he disclosed that part from the fact that the tour signals a watershed in citizens' participation in governance and development, it was also a platform for building a beneficial network and assured that the first outing was successful.
Some of the participants in the tour in their respective assessments have commended the state government for the remodeling work going on in the hospital, which the said will provide alternative to the overstretched University of Uyo Teaching hospital.
Mr. Imo Abiaran noted; “From this perspective, I choose to believe that some reasonable and visible effort has been put into the area of equipping (medical equipment, medical supplies, staff training) and face-lift (building remodeling and construction) of the General Hospital, Etinan.
“This should be commended by every reasonable Akwa Ibom State citizen.Some equipment we saw yesterday would not be found in a number of private hospitals within Akwa Ibom State. Prove me wrong if you can”.
Mr. Abiaran however frowned at the situation where the administrative section of the hospital is still engaged in some analog forms of operations and called on the government to ensure that the hospital is digitalised in order for it to meet today's health care needs.
On her part, Ofonmbuk Obot stressed that it is a civil obligation and right of the citizens to air their concerns and ensure that the government is accountable to them, adding the Akwa Ibom Citizens' Tour is an initiative that will push the people of the that direction.
“Our aim is to go see Akwa-Ibom beyond newspapers, TV and social media. It's for us to individually assess and rate the activities and projects undertaken by our government from our own perspective. How does it affect and benefit the citizens, the communities and the state at large?
“The renovation of the Etinan General hospital came as a soothing relief to the people of Etinan, as it was a major concern and possible health threat to the community due to the deteriorating state of the hospital.
“From the testimonies of some of the participants who had visited the hospital in time past, staff of the hospital, patients and caregivers as well as the current state of old buildings within the premises, I was able to appreciate the improved state of the hospital.
“Provision of medical equipments, facilities and supplies was commendable, as this will ease the rate of poor health service delivery due to lack of equipment to attend to certain ailments, and also reduce the pressure on faced by the University Teaching Hospital and also reduce the cost of accessing quality service delivery by the community and other surrounding communities.
“The creation of an Accident and Emergency response unit is to be highly appreciated. This is the area where most hospital fails”, she added.
She however raised concerns over critical issues such as the usual poor attitude of medical workers, insecurity and speedy completion of all the phases to ensure that the hospital is set for optimal performance, stressing the need for maintenance and sustainability.
Another participant in the tour, Mr. Etefia commended the state government for equipping the hospital with cutting edge technology facilities, saying it is a big boost to the health sector of the state and called on proper awareness creation for the citizens.
Earlier, the chief medical director of the hospital, Dr Ime Eshiet who took the visitors round the hospital, who took the visitors round the hospital, said that with the remodeling of the hospital, the state government has shown sincere commitment to develop the health sector of the state.
He commended Governor Udom Emmanuel for committing enormous resources towards the renovation of the hospital while describing the gesture as very cheering and highly commendable, noting that the ongoing renovation will make healthcare delivery more accessible to the people of the area.
"It is part of the efforts of the present administration of transforming the healthcare delivery in the state thereby promoting the overall health and wellbeing of Akwa Ibom people", he said.
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