By Hassan Zaggi
For his effort in bringing innovation in the medical field that has resulted in the drastic reversal of medical tourism in Nigeria, the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of Alliance Hospital, Dr. Christopher Otabor, has been given an award by youth from the 19 northern states of Nigeria.
Operating under the aegis of Northern Youths Association of Nigeria, the group explained that having followed the activities of Dr. Itabor for a long time, it found him worthy to be one of the recipients of its highly prestigious awards.
The group which described Dr Otabor as an “Icon of Nation Building, explained that the award was in recognition of his philanthropy, human and educational transformation for the benefit of humanity.
Speaking, the President of the Northern Youth Association of Nigeria, Comrade Adams Bogoro, said: “We are here to identify with you on what you have been doing. You have contributed positively to the Nigerian society, so we are here to encourage you to do more.
“We have been following your antecedents for quite some time. This hospital has really done very well, especially in the area of reducing medical tourism. It’s based on this that we deemed it feet to consider you as one of the recipients of our award.
“Basically, the award is to spur, encourage and motivate you to do more. The award is also to serve as a catalyst for you to continue to give your best to the service of the nation.”
Comrade Bogoro further said: “We are one people with a common destiny as exemplified by the founding fathers of Nigeria, most especially those from the northern extraction.
“As part of the convention of the group, we try as much as possible to identify with people like you who have demonstrated patriotism to the country.”
Responding, Dr Otabor said he was overwhelmed considering that the award came at a time many youths were roaming the streets without direction and instead engaging in terrorism, banditry, armed robbery and other social vices.
“On behalf of the management of Alliance Hospital, I wish to formally accept this award-The Sardauna Award. Thank you very much for considering me fit for this very prestigious award. I want to assure you that this would encourage us to do even more of what you have already seen in me,” he said.
He further explained that: “With a population of over 200 million people, Nigerians are going out of the country for medical care- to India, Egypt, the USA and other countries of the world.
“A lot of people talk about the problem and not many people talk about the solution, so I decided that we would be part of the solution rather than just talking about the problem.
“So, we invested heavily in equipment and also got the best hands in the country. And I can assure you that we are achieving the purpose for which Alliance Hospital was set up.
“Alliance Hospital is a leading centre for joint replacement surgery in this country -both hip and knee replacements. And these are surgeries that were being done abroad but we do it now. We are also very strong in brain and spine surgery. We have done many in this regard. Last year alone, we did over 40 surgeries. The same figure for brain surgery.
“Now, we have acquired the competences for kidney transplant. People go to spend over a hundred million naira to do kidney transplant in countries like the US and the United Kingdom, but with only 20 percent of that amount or less, we are safely doing kidney transplant in this centre with a very high success rate. This is besides so many other things that we do as a hospital. I am proud of our results.
“When you have success, people will also want to come and dent your image. We have had crisis in recent times but I want to assure you that we have integrity as a hospital.”
