A delegation from the Federal Ministry of Health paid an on-site inspection visit to the old General Hospital in Okigwe, which was just recently upgraded to a federal medical centre status. The delegates visited and inspected the new facilities in the hospital, and while gauging the standard of service and the overall experience of the hospital by patients.
The General Hospital, Okigwe, is a government-funded health institution catering to the Public health needs of Okigwe residents and environs. The General Hospital Okigwe situated along Okigwe-Abba Omega Road in Okigwe, serves over 200,000 residents in the Okigwe Zone.
The hospital was established as part of Imo State’s public health network providing general medicine, emergency care, maternity services, and basic diagnostics to residents of the area. Basic medical practices include handling routine cases like malaria, hypertension, and child immunizations.
The hospital was built former Governor Rochas Okorocha’s administration as one of 30 new hospitals costing N30 billion statewide. It was designed to provide access to basic healthcare for the rural communities in Okigwe.
Like all general hospitals in Nigeria, challenges faced includes dilapidated infrastructure, equipment shortages, and staffing gaps. An intervention attempt was made In 2019, under a Public-Private Partnership, were some hospitals in Imo state was leased to the Church, but Okigwe’s status remains state-managed.
General hospitals in Nigeria are usually low-budget and heavily subsidized, making them the preffered health care alternative for the general public.
In other news, the Federal University Okigwe was officially added to the official Federal Government Gazette of approved federal universities in the Nation. This adds to the already booming educational tourism in Imo state following the existence of over seven tertiary education institutions in the state.
