We’ll make National Orthopedic Hospital Jalingo to international standard – Prof Tahir
By Mohammed Kaka
The Medical Director of the newly established National Orthopedic Hospital Jalingo, Professor Chubado Tahir, has unveiled plans to give the federal health institution an international outlook, both in terms of structure and quality healthcare delivery.
Tahir who is the pioneer MD of the hospital and a Professor of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery stated this in an interview with our correspondent in his office on Thursday.
“Our aim is to establish a hospital that is world standard, that will provide virtually all the specialized services in orthopedics and trauma and plastic and Reconstructive Surgery”, he said.
The medical director who appreciated President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for appointing him to pilot the affairs of the hospital, noted that land has been allocated to the hospital to construct its permanent site by the State Government.
“We have been given land for our permanent site and we already have a plan for the site, which includes virtually all the clinical, administration and all other supportive departments”, he noted.
According to him, in the initial phase, they aim to make sure that they have started clinical services, which made them to concentrate on the temporary site for the meantime.
He said that the hospital has in the last eight months commenced general outpatient clinic and have started surgical operations about two months ago.
“We have been making efforts to get interventions to start construction on our permanent site, we were initially given land for permanent site and I applied to the State Government for more and His Excellency, the executive Governor graciously approved and now we have enough land to cater for our needs, Prof Tahir stated.
He pointed out that his number one priority is to get the perimeter fencing done to secure the land, adding that, efforts is been made to get support for its construction.
The Medical Director further explained that one of the priorities of the management of the hospital under his watch is to construct the accident and emergency block which houses emergency department and some wards, saying that the structure alone is capable of providing close to a hundred bed spaces for admission, including the theatres for the accident emergency.
Prof Tahir said, “if we get that done, it will become a mini hospital and we can actually extend our services tremendously. After that, we will now focus on the other departments, for example the outpatient clinics which will house some wards because they are all storey buildings”.
While stressing that the hospital will have theater complexes, Radiology, Laboratory, Physiotherapy etc. Prof Tahir said the management intends to be handling the construction one after the other as interventions come.
He expressed hope that the budget for the hospital will be enhanced to enable the management construct a modern Hospital within the shortest time.
He said that the hospital which serves the Northeast subregion have patients coming from all over the subregion, this will ease the burden of taking patients to far away places.
“Before now, they all had to travel to National Orthopaedic Hospital Dala in Kano or the one in Enugu, this entails travel expenses, dangers of traveling, accommodation, feeding and the cost of their medical care”, the MD observed.
He reasoned that if National Orthopedic Hospital Jalingo is developed most of the burdens would be taken care of in addition to provision of employment for the citizens, including other supportive services, which will in turn, boost the economy of the people.
“The benefits are tremendous and we are making efforts to see that we have that”, he added.
The MD who stated that he has been in touch with virtually most of the stakeholders for support, noted that many have visited the hospital and have promised to contribute to the success of the project.
“Some have started making their contribution and I hope within the next few months of the year we will be able to see some tremendous changes”, he disclosed.
Prof Tahir informed the general public that the hospital is fully operational now and the services are affordable especially when compared to the people who had to travel for long distances.
He said that the available services in the hospital include all orthopedic and trauma cases such as fractures and diseases of bones and joints as well as general outpatients clinics which will compliment the services been provided by other sister hospitals.
“Very soon we will start surgeries for joint replacements. Other surgeries include complication of burns, like contractures, ulcers, skin cancers, scars, deformities. others are injuries and diseases of the hand, birth defect like cleft lip & palates etc “, he declared.
He said, in order to build the capacity of the staff, the management is facilitating routine visits of specialists from other centers to render service and rapidly make the place a major training center,assuring that the Staff would continue to build on that.