From National Youth Service Corp(NYSC) to Chief Executive Officer(CEO), the 20 year journey of Medical Director , Federal Medical Center Azare

By Mohammed Kaka Misau

Dr. Abdullahi Ibrahim, the current Chief Medical Director of Federal Medical Center (FMC) Azare in Bauchi state has narrated how he emerged the position after serving his one year mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) at the hospital.

Dr. Ibrahim who has occupied the number one position in the hospital for about eight years was borned about 49 years ago in Bichi local government area of Kano state.

He equally did his primary and junior school in Bichi, therafter proceeded to Dawankin Tofa science secondary school whare he graduated in 1989.

The CMD said in an interview with our Corresspondent that after his secondary school, he got admitted into Ahmadu Bello University Zaria in 1990 to study medicine and graduated in 1998.

“I did my internship at Ahmadu Bello University Teaching hospital Kaduna and was posted to Bauchi state for my NYSC in the 2000, after the orientation, I was deployed to serve at the general hospital Azare before the general hospital was converted to federal medical center that same year”, he said.

The Medical Director said after his youth service in 2001 he was offered employment as a medical officer in the hospital.

“In 2003 I went to pursue my post-graduate Residency Programme at University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital where I obtained Fellow in Medical College of Physician with specialization in Neurology in 2008”, Dr Ibrahim said.

“From there I came back to federal medical center Azare to continue my work as a Consultant Neurologist. I also gained admission in 2013 to study Master in Business Administration and got it in 2016”, he added.

Dr. Ibrahim who began his working experience at the federal medical center Azare as a medical officer also served as Registrar at University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital where he rose to senior Registrar before coming back to FMC Azare as a Consultant in federal medical center Azare.

According to him, while serving as Consultant at the federal medical center Azare, he was appointed Medical Director of the hospital in April 2014.

“Been a pioneer staff at the center, in the 2000 I was previleged to be with all the previous medical directors of the hospital up to the time I ascented to the position. So, the previous medical directors, the pioneer and the first medical director, Dr Sabo Saleh started this current site and after two years, Dr. Umar Faruq came and started developing the permanent site and put some buildings in the permanent site”, the CMD pointed out.

He said, “it was during the time of Dr. Umar Faruq that the general outpatient commenced at the permanent site and the paediatric and Radiology complex were constructed but not equipped and there were no activities going on there”.

Dr. Ibrahim who said, upon assumption of duty as the medical director, he focused on all the areas that will bring about better services and equipments in the hospital.

“We focused on service delivery, we focused on infrastructural development, we also focused on human capital development”, he noted.

On the aspect of services, Dr. Ibrahim said he ensured that patients gets the desired service delivery from the hospital’s committed staff by improving on the outpatients and commencing the afternoon and evening clinics in NHIS and Reteinarship.

He disclosed that over 400 personnel of the hospital were trained in various fields with a view to delivering effective and efficient health care services to the people.

“W trained many nurses in order to give better services and many doctors were also trained to become specialists, so many clinical and non clinical, in fact, in the last eight years, we have trained more than 400 staff in various categories, we got so many of them who become consultants, some family physicians, technologies, Surgeons, nephrologist, among others”, he said.

The CMD further said during the period under review, accreditation was secured to train residents as well as accreditation to train Radiologists both for national and west Africa.

“We have accreditation for paediatrics, west Africa, we also have visit by the accreditation team which we hope to get in Obstetric and ghanacology, medicine and we are expecting a team for Optalmology”, he added.

On infrastructural development, the CMD said that the hospital has also improved on the available ones in the hospital’s permanent site by constructing road networks and walkways that will ease the movement of patients.

“Even the entrance road was dualized, we are equipped with paediatric complex, we have equipped the Radiology complex with the state of the art equipments, we have build a trauma center and equipped it and made it functional”, Dr. Ibrahim further stated.

Adding that, “we relocated the paediatrics to the permanent site, relocate the Radiology to the permanent site, we built the trauma center and relocate the A and E to permanent site, we completed the female medical ward and relocate it to the permanent site”.

He said that the CBN in line with her corporate social responsibility, following a move by one of the former Medical Directors, late Dr. Musa Dambam initiated discussion with the CBN of which he took up upon assumption of office and obtained a grant that enable the hospital to have optalmology and laboratory complexes at the permanent site.

“Similarly, we look for a grant from TetFund through Bauchi state university Gadau and now we have a school of nursing of which we have already commenced training of nurses, we have provided the necessary structures around the school and we have also completed the consultant offices that will soon be put to use”, the Dr. Said.

“We were even thinking of using it initially for girls hostel before we get one for them. We have build a molecular laboratory which is fully functional. A lot of infrastructure are now about to be completed, all these activities are visibly seen in the permanent site and it is fully operational 24 hours, 7 days a week and we still trying to improve by putting more on ground”, he said.

The CMD who described the relationship between the hospital and the host Communities as excellent and good, noted that last year the emir visited the hospital and appreciated their operations.

“I want to tell you, FCM Azare is one of the FGs tertiary hospital that have the least cost of services that are rendered and that it is equipped with state of the art equipments. We have CT scan, we have digital X-ray both mobile and fixed, we have blood culture machine, among others”, Dr Ibrahim boasted.

He said that the hospital has the personnel that are manning those equipments and the Communities are patronizing them and are happy with their services.

In the area of outreach, the CMD said that the hospital has carried about three outreach to the host Communities.

“We have collaborated with the Nigeria Air force to do the outreach, we have done a lot of outreaches”, Dr Ibrahim disclosed.

He assured that the staff of the hospital will continue to work as well as improving in the their services in order to fully satisfy the health needs of the people.

While calling for continued patronage from the communities, Dr. Ibrahim appealed to the clients to at the same time maintain orderliness.

“In few months time my tenure will elapse and many people are eying the position and I hope that the hospital will get somebody who will continue to improve on what has been done in the hospital already in terms of both human capital and infrastructural development, service delivery and discipline among the staff”, he noted.