FMC Lokoja To Upgrade To University Teaching Hospital

A team from the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) on Thursday visited the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Lokoja, on facility inspection and preparation toward conversion of the hospital to Federal University Lokoja Teaching Hospital.

In her remarks, the leader of the team, Dr Adebimpe Adebiyi, Director Hospital Services, FMoH, Abuja, said that the team was in Lokoja on behalf of the Minister of state for Health, Sen. Olorunibe Mamora, to inspect the hospital facilities.

According to her, the objective of our visit is to come and see what you have on ground that will match the proposal for the transition from the Federal Medical Centre to a teaching hospital.

She explained that there were criteria for approval and final recommendations to President Muhammadu Buhari would come from the office of the Minister of state for Health, who is the supervising minister.

She noted that in the team “are the technical officers, the foot soldiers in the ministry, who would ensure that due diligence is carried out.

She congratulated the FMC management for being able to overcome the challenges encountered when the hospital was locked down for more than six months.

Earlier, the Medical Director, FMC Lokoja, Dr Olatunde Alabi, made a presentation on the history, structure, outlook and the current state of the hospital in terms of infrastructure, management, staff strength, successes and challenges.

In his presentation, he said that the FMC Lokoja was established in 1999 and it had been serving as the major tertiary federal health institution in Kogi and its neighbouring states.

He disclosed that inadequate manpower remained one of the main challenges facing the hospital due to brain drain and retirement, among others.

The medical director conducted the team round the hospital facilities, assuring them that the board of management and the entire staff of the hospital were fully prepared.

He explained that the National Universities Commission (NUC) had also come for inspection, stressing that the board of management and the entire staff of the hospital were fully ready.