From Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
The Benue State Government has disclosed its intention to employ 820 Nurses across the state to boost the healthcare delivery services in the state.
Governor Samuel Ortom disclosed this Thursday in Makurdi during the opening ceremony of the 13th National Scientific Conference and Annual General Meeting of the Nigeria Association of Nurse Anaesthetists (NANA) tagged “Makurdi 2021” approved by Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN).
The governor who was represented by Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Dr Joseph Ngbea said the Health sector in Benue state had suffered a major setback in terms of manpower which must be fixed.
‘In the Health sector, as far as manpower is concerned is an emergency and not just the Anaesthetists. There is a pandemic where we have very few manpower in all the sectors of health in Benue.
‘When I visited the General Hospital Agatu in March this year, they had only three nurses and two of them were to retire by April. As we speak now, I am sure there is only one Nurse there and we are doing everything possible to employ more nurses.
‘We are going to advertise to employ 820 Nurses across Benue State,’ Ngbea said.
X-raying some efforts of Governor Samuel Ortom in the Health sector during his time as commissioner, Dr Ngbea who doubled as chairman of the occasion said ‘when we came on board, His Excellency approved and we supplied ICU beds, Ambulance and ventilators to the Benue State Teaching Hospital. I think that was in good light of the importance of anaesthetists,’ he added.
In order to address manpower shortage in the sector, Dr Ngbea urged the keynote speaker, Dr Michael Enokela, to arrange with the leadership of NANA and visit the Ministry of Health so as to look at ways of training more Anaesthetists.
Earlier in a welcome address, NANA National Chairman Ogbaje Friday expressed the determination of the association to continue to offer and render Anaesthesia services to the teeming population of Nigeria. He recalled that even when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, people who needed Anaesthesia services were not denied.
Speaking on the theme “Anaesthesia Best Practices In The Current Global Health Reality”, Dr Michael Enokela Efu, who is Head of Anaesthesia at the Benue State University Makurdi Teaching Hospital, while presenting a keynote address explained the term anaesthesia as a reversible, careful and predictable method of pain relief given to patients during surgery or childbirth.
He said anaesthesia prevents violence that surgeons could suffer at the hands of patients, adding that patients who undergo surgery without anaesthesia are always angry and they are happy when they see anaesthetists around them.