…PPP in Garki hospital has not fail
By Hassan Zaggi
The Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) has raised the alarm over what it described as the increasing attack on innocent health care providers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The NMA Chairman of the FCT, Dr. Charles Ugwuanyi, raised the alarm at a media in Abuja, yesterday.
He, therefore, warned patients to desist henceforth from attacking healthcare providers no matter the level of frustration, insisting the act is not only condemnably, it is reprehensible and can no longer be tolerated.
Dr. Ugwuanyi vowed that further intimidation, harassment and assault of health care providers by patients will no longer be taken lightly.
He lamented that the constant intimidation and harassment of the healthcare providers is making both older and younger doctors to be scared of their working environment.
To put to an end to the ugly menace, the NMA chairman said that plans have been concluded to raise a massive awareness campaign across both public and private hospitals in the FCT to ensure that patients get the message and also aware of the dangers inherent in attacking innocent healthcare providers.
“Therefore, we appeal to you, to desist henceforth, from harassing, intimidating and assaulting any health care provider.
“We make this at this time in order for us to have a conducive atmosphere to continue to provide this care that we provide.
“You will agree with us that it is not easy for us. Any form of assault, physical, emotional, verbal or otherwise is not tolerated.
“We are launching a campaign across the length and breath of FCT to sensitize the public in both public and private hospitals on the increasing violent against healthcare providers.
“We are appealing to the general public to conduct themselves with decorum when they enter healthcare space. If you make us scare to attend to you, I don’t know what you are going to gain out of it. It is not going to do anybody any good.”
While saying that the general social-economic situation in the country is a cause for frustration by most Nigerians, he however, noted that: “We want to make it clear that we understand the frustration of our patients, your frustrations are very palpable, but you have no clue of how much frustration we as healthcare providers are also facing.
“The truth is that we are all operating in this socio-economic climate which to my mind is not palatable to anyone, therefore, it is simply not right to transfer any frustrations to the innocent health care providers. We have our own problems too, we are only here to help.
“It is simply not right to transfer any frustration to the innocent health care providers, we have our own problems too.”
Commenting on issue of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) in Garki Hospital, the NMA Chairman insisted that the arrangement has not fail.
He, therefore, called on the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) to replicate the PPP arrangement in other hospitals.
“We are aware that the government is planning to take over the Garki hospital. While we are not interfering with government decision, we want to make some points very clear. This arrangement, to our mind has not fail. We have many reasons for that.
“Therefore, if any arrangement is being made to takeover the place, let it not be that the experiment has failed.
As a matter of fact, before the PPP arrangement, Garki hospital was barely not a functional hospital.”
