By Abooluwa Famakinwa
Towards safeguarding the health of residents of the State, the Ondo State Government has vowed to Sanitise the Health Sector of quacks and all wrong doings.
The Acting Permanent Secretary Ministry of Health, Dr. Dipo Durojaye after being briefed by the Ministry’s Monitoring team,who monitored hospitals in Okitipupa,in the Southern Senatorial Districts of the State and closed down ARIB Hospital located at Iretolu street, Okitipupa, owned by one Dr. Odusola Aribo for training about 52 Auxiliary Nurses, which is not allowed by law.
Other offences committed by Dr. Odusola Aribo is that, he started a hospital without following laid down regulations and did not register the hospital with the State Ministry of Health which makes it illegal.
Dr Durojaye said it will not be business as usual in the State health sector as Government will decend heavily on quacks and those opening hospitals indiscriminately.
He vowed that any private health facility training health personnel will be sanctioned. As the Government will not allow the life of the people to be endangered.
Read Also: Achieving An Effective PHC System: ODSG Pledges Commitment To Training Of Health Workers
The Acting Permanent Secretary added that it has come to the knowledge of the Ministry, of so much wrong doings in the health sector and the government is poised to sanitise the sector.
He also warned Patient Medicine Stores operating as hospitals and treating patients, to desist from such act which poses great threat to the well-being of the society or face the of the wrath of the law.
The Director Hospital Services, Dr Richard Adesoji said quacks are dangerous to the health sector as they are not properly trained, cannot make correct diagnosis and usually jump to conclusions and these acts are responsible for unnecessary mortality in the Country.
Dr. Adesoji said despite the enormous negative effects,quarks have on the society, people still ignorantly patronise them and this is unacceptable to the Government.
He disclosed that hospitals that cannot employ qualified Nurses, can make use the of Community Health Extension Workers ( CHEWS) as agreed at the National Council on Health.
The Director Nursing Services , Mrs Alice Ogundele who led the monitoring team to Okitipupa said it was alarming that some hospital in that locality had more than 50 quarks in training , when even some accredited Schools of Nursing and Midwifery are only allowed to admit 50 or less.
Mrs Ogundele said this trend was dangerous to the Nursing Profession, as it will not allow qualified Nurses get jobs as these quacks are a source of cheap labour just wasting their future away.
She said these Quacks called Auxiliary Nurses, constitute danger to humanity as they are half baked, do not know the rationale behind their actions and perpetrate several wrong doings in the health sector; such as operating Patient Medicine Stores as hospitals.
Mrs Ogundele warned the populace not to patronise hospitals where there are trainees.
Some other Hospitals visited in Okitipupa are: St. Peter’s Hospital, Akingbola Hospital and Oresanya Hospital, where student trainees took to their heels on sighting the monitoring team.
These other three Hospitals were served letters of warning to desist from acts that are capable of endangering the health of the people or face seriously sanctions and eventual closure.