UCH inaugurates N127m intensive care unit

The Chief Medical Director of the University College Hospital, Prof. Jesse Otegbayo, on Monday, inaugurated a mulit-milion naira Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the hospital.

Inaugurating the N127m project situated at the premises of the tertiary hospital in Inadan, Otegbayo said the facilities in the unit would help the hospital to take care of more critically ill patients.

“We are not unaware of the fact that the country is looking up to us to provide leadership in the health sector, as the hospital of the last resort.

“This has propelled us to come with the renovation and updating the equipment of the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital.

“Often times, there are cases of needless deaths. It saddens my heart when patients who should be given first-class treatment could not get it because of lack of basic equipment that is taken for granted in other hospitals of equal status outside the country.

“The equipment we are commissioning are seven mechanical Turbo power ventilators, six multi-channel invasion monitors, one central monitor, four syring pumps, four infusion pumps, six SAM-14 suction pumps, six electric beds, six air mattresses and two crash carts.

“We did a complete renovation of the right wing of the ICU, which has not been used in about 36 months. This involved re-wiring, re-painting and installation of seven air conditioners, overhauling of the pumping system and a complete change of the upholstery.

“All of these cost about N127 million, which we pooled together from our internally generated revenue (IGR). We got the equipment from the General Electric (GE), renowned for first-class medical equipment.

“With these facilities now in place, I can assure Nigerians that the UCH is poised for a better care for our critically ill patients. We can be sure of near zero death cases henceforth because we have the needed human resources.

“We are training and retraining them. At the same time, we are investing in developing our facilities to maximize the investment in human resources.

According to him, the tertiary hospital’s ICU ranks the best among public health institutions in Nigeria.

Otegbayo also said that the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, had fulfilled his promise to procure additional dialysis machines for the hospital.

“Pastor Enoch Adeboye has released the money for the machines and the contract has been awarded.

“He paid N20 million for the purchase of two machines,” he said.