Dr Ohiri signing the UNTH visitors register
The Director General/CEO, of National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr Kelechi Ohiri, on Friday visited Enugu State to assess performance of some of the NHIA accredited facilities and those rendering services to the beneficiaries of the Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn care (CEmONC) and cancer programmes in the state.
During the tour, Ohiri visited the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Enugu as well as the Goodwill Medical Centre, Enugu.
He went round the two facilities to assess the level of their performances and compliance with the operational guidelines in line with the mandate of the authority.
The visit featured access to care by CEmONC patients, NHIA-ROCHE cancer cost-sharing intervention, the NHIA pharmacy at the teaching hospital, where medicines worth over N300,000,000 (three hundred million naira) were procured and stocked at the hospital’s pharmacy store
Receiving the NHIA DG to the facility, the Chief Medical Director of UNTH, Prof. Obinna Onodugo said that, for the past six (6) months, there was nothing like “out-of-stock” in the hospital.
He reiterated the hospital’s commitment to ensuring that at no time would the hospital experience ‘out-of-stock’ syndrome.
The DG/CEO, inspecting drugs at the UNTH
At the Oncology department of UNTH, the representative of the department, Dr. Vitalis Okwor, who took the DG round the various sections, explained that the programme has been of immense assistance to the beneficiaries and to the society at large.
He appealed that the waiting period after enrolment for cancer patients should be given special consideration since their cases required emergency treatment, especially radiotherapy.
The DG also visited other departments including the paediatrics emergency/ward, NHIA desk office among others.
Highlights of the visit to UNTH included the presentation of some CEmONC babies to the director general by some of the beneficiaries who were at the post-natal ward during the visit.
Also, the signing of an archival visitors register by Dr Ohiri, as presented by the CMD. The archival register is signed by high profile visitors to the hospital.
At the Goodwill Medical Centre, Dr Ohiiri was taken round the building to assess the theatre, wards, labour room, water treatment plant and others.
The Chairman of the Hospital’s Management Board, Prof. Uche Amazigo praised the DG/CEO of NHIA, for his intelligent and capacity to deal with the healthcare delivery system in Nigeria.
She gave an assurance that the facility would continue to render services to humanity as it was part of the reason why it was established with the assistance of Gen. Theophilus Danjuma (Rtd).
She also emphasised the commitment of NHIA to ensuring sustainability of its programmes, especially those geared towards alleviating the sufferings of the most vulnerable in the society.
During the visit to the hospital, the village heads of the host community, thanked Dr Ohiri most sincerely for the assistance CEmONC and other NHIA programmes were rendering to the community and its environs.
They pleaded with the DG to continue with the good works and never to relent in the services he has been rendering to the downtrodden.
However, the DG asked them to also thank President Bola Tinubu and the Hon. Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate.
