Goodevening.
I am a concerned citizen of Lagos.I am also TAX payer and must bring to the attention of the government of the day,my experience at Isolo General Hospital.
I am not a politician but i believed in the campaign promises of the APC,among it is the FREE MEDICAL/AFFORDABLE HEALTHCARE SERVICES.
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Four years ago during the tenure of Barr.Babatunde Fashola,I put to bed at that hospital.The hospital bill I paid was minimal and it was affordable.Everything worked fine then,I walked into the Labour ward that looked like abroad,air conditioners were all working,poise and clean environment.It was a place to be.
This year (August 19th,2016),the Labour rooms were looking so bad.The bed in there is in a terrible state,all WORN OUT.I was told to go in and lie on a bed that was really irritating.Also no proper cleaning culture,someone put to bed,the place wasnot clean,I was told to use the room but i couldnot stand it so I had to beg before the cleaner did her job!
This year,I battled with mosquitoes all through the Labour process all night(because the place is just not clean anymore,no fumigation plans,nothing!)While in Labour,4years ago it wasnot like that.I enjoyed the process of putting to bed in a conducive environment.
In that hospital,things are just not working right.There is an institutional/structural failure.
For instance,they needed to place some newborn on oxygen but they didn’t have enough.It became survival of the fittest.Man know man (who do you know)!We bought everything in that hospital,I recalled we bought even handwash that will be used in an hospital!We buy everything in that hospital.
Lots of the facilities are spoilt,no proper maintanance and if this trend continues,it will be worse by next year.
Attached is the picture of the room where mother’s of the new born whose children have medical issues,and are transferred to pediatric ward sleep at night.They sleep on the floor!I mean bare floor…..I shed tears when I saw that!It made me understand why people will go abroad for medical attention.
As I write this mail today,I can categorically state that the few incubators and machines in the pediatric ward are not working and for the very few that are working,they are not working at full capacity (Not working Optimally).They also do not have enough pediatrician.
I took time to observe that the hospital has a pediatric ward for new born(3rd floor)and a pediatric clinic with about 100-150 patients daily(ground floor) and they have just maximum of 2-3doctors running and shuttling between both floors.One wouldnot understand the pain of patient there until one experiences this.
Having discussed with some staff,it was so glaring that they are under staffed and this lead to the poor attitude they display when majority of them attend to patient.Most of them attend to patient without courtesy.
They need more pediatrician and pediatric nurses in that arm of the hospital.It is so obvious but no doctor/nurse is willing to speak out cos they want to protect their jobs.
A woman just put to bed,I was surprised when she and her new born were sent out of the bed.The new mother was told not use the bed again and start using and sleeping on the chair.I was so inquisitive and after asking why she was treated that way,I was told she couldnot afford to pay her bills.They stopped giving her food too and she wasnot allowed to go.I had to start giving her my food so she will at least have strength to feed the new baby.Several of this cases i knew of while i was admitted.She was yet to balance N88,000.Many other similar cases of this form that I knew about while I was there.
Summary of Issues to be Addressed :
1. The high bills paid by patients
2. How to resolve payment for so many people that cannot afford it as a general hospital is the last hope of the masses.
3. Help get the incubators and other machines in pediatrics ward and other wards work optimally.
4. Help change the bed at Labour ward and get the ward well equipped,fumigated periodically and continuous maintainance culture, etc
5. Provide space to accommodate new mums whose children have medical issues at birth and are admitted in the ward so we won’t continue to have them on the cold floor.
6. Provision of handwash and sanitizers for doctors and nurses in every ward.
7. Increase the number of pediatricians and pediatric nurse’s.
I humbly request that this mail shouldnot be ignored and the issues raised should be looked into for quick and prompt resolution.I can be reached for more details.
Thank you.
Shade
END
I doff my hat for politicians.
They rather buy and share clippers, hair driers and sewing machines to able body people that can stand and vote on election days than someone in labour that knows not who bought them an so may vote the wrong way.
To get some of these anomalies corrected, we do not need seven points agenda as by Yaradua PDP government. My guess is we need a legislature banning public officers from traveling abroad for medical reasons and visiting private hospitals in Nigeria, there children must not attend public schools and universities and politics should be made a part time occupation.
I will continue to say that if our politicians and leaders went to hospitals like Ikeja and isolo general hospitals, we won’t be having such poor medical facilities. That is a story for another day.
We the masses are actually a bigger part of the problem. We talk and complain of the facilities but ask the hospital officials and staff for the truth of what is done with the money made by the hospital. Or do an investigation into it and you might see some embezzlement and misappropriation.
Let’s move away from the finances and talk about the attitude of the staff there. The writer had to plead with the cleaner to do her job. She is employed to clean. I’ll repeat again, employed to clean. And yet she is being begged to do what she is employed to do. This makes me wonder why most Nigerians complain of unemployment rate when most Nigerians are unemployable. We really need to start being our brothers keepers and also start playing our own part in the progress of this country. We all need to stop being lazy and blaming the govt for everything. There is a limit to what they can do.
Ur notice is highly welcome but go to ikeja general hospital dey will write drug for u dat is not useful at d end of d day if u are discharged and d excess is taking back to d pharmacy for u to get some change dey will not take it back u will end up throwing it away this is very killing.