House of Representatives commits to improving facilities at LUTH

The House of Representatives Committee on Health has pledged its commitment to improving the  facilities at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH).

The Chairman of the committee, Rep. Amos Mogaji, gave the commitment when he led other members of the committee on an  oversight visit to the teaching hospital at Idi-Araba, Lagos, on Tuesday.

Mogaji, who said that the visit was the first official visit of the committee to LUTH ,assured there the would be constant engagements with the management of the hospital throughout the tenure of the committee with a view to improving the state of the things at the tertiary hospital.

He said that the committee was working to see that the health care system in Nigeria was fully developed.

According to him, the committee will do its best to ensure that LUTH is better than what it is today in years to come.

“That is why we will continue with oversight engagements to ensure that funds are released, used fast for people- friendly projects and also ensure that the funds are well -utilised.

“We will come and see places where funds are given and other places that are short of funds. We will have to sit down and look at things critically” Mogaji said.

Mogaji said the “Japa sydrome” had put Nigeria in a precarious situation, especially with the exodus of health professionals.

“It is unfortunate that we can’t stop people from going, but there are things that we could do to attract people to come or to stay.

“We must work together to ensure that our health care system is revamped and in the next four years, we would work together to reverse medical tourism.

Earlier, the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Prof. Wasiu Adeyemo, said that LUTH had been funded by the Federal Government since 1962 ,the year it was established.

Adeyemo said that the 61-year-old hospital was the only public health institution generating electricity with its own Independent Power Project ,adding that constant electricity supply at the hospital was a huge responsibility.

“Without electricity, it will be impossible to have the best cancer centre in the whole of West Africa with support from government, through intervention from NSIA.

“President Muhammadu Buhari came to commission the project in February 2019 and that project alone has attracted so many people within and without Nigeria and has reduced medical tourism.

“Between February 2019 and now, LUTH has treated 9,600 cancer patients,” Adeyemo said.

The CMD, while appreciating the committee for the visit, urged it to do its best to help surmount the  challenges facing the hospital.