We Are Treating Poor Patients Free, Courtesy Indigent Fund Initiative – CMD

By Emmanuel Adeoye

The Chief Medical Director, CMD, of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti, FETHI, Professor Ebenezer Adekunle Ajayi has revealed that the health institution has been treating and offering free healthcare services to extremely poor patients through a special indigent fund initiative launched to cater for the needy in the society by stakeholders.

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The Chief Administrator of the Federal Teaching Hospital at Ido Ekiti, Professor Ebenezer Adekunle Ajayi dropped the hint on Tuesday while playing host to the members of the Online Media Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Ekiti State Council who paid him a courtesy visit in his office.

According to the CMD, Professor Ajayi, he said, “few weeks back, when he sat with the stakeholders of the Federal Teaching Hospital, after considering the extremely poor status of many patients visiting the hospital, it was resolved, that an indigent patient funds initiative be launched to attend to the needs of such poor patients”.

Speaking further, Professor Ajayi explained how the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti has been receiving and managing poor patients in its emergency unit without asking them for money before admission.

Ajayi revealed further that the general concern of the Management of FETHI has been to help stabilize the patients health condition first before asking for payment. 

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He listed other decisions of the Stakeholders in the Federal Health Institution to include establishment of Hospital Infrastructures Development Initiative, improvement in the facility built during the time of the Late General Adeyinka Adebayo, the Governor of the Western Region of the Country as well as building the Capacity of the personnels and improving the quality of the medical equipments in the hospital. 

Ajayi narrated how his Management have been able to write off many bills owed by patients through the cheerful  contributions from staffs of the hospital and other well to do people of the  society at large. 

“We always call on the well to do in the society and our staffs to donate no matter how little into the indigent patient funds to treat the poor patients that comes to the hospital for treatment. 

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“We have written off many bills owed by patients through the indigent patient funds. From the human head to toe, there is no area of the body that we have not gotten somebody that will help to attend to the patients. 

“Our mandate is essentially to give to Nigerians in our area of coverage quality healthcare services. In delivering this mandate, obviously, we meet with a lot of challenges but we are confident we cannot be overcome by such challenges. 

“We have tried as much as possible to do our best to see that we give to the people, not just what they deserve but quality healthcare services they paid for.  

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He went on to describe the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti as a devoted health Institution committed to serving the people as well as in training of medical students at Undergraduate and Postgraduate levels. 

Ajayi also maintained that the training of Postgraduate Doctors in different specialities of medicine have been there priority to the extent that they have  produced many experts.

He listed the different categories of medical personnels that they have been able to train to include those in the Family Medicine, Cardiologists, Nethrologists, Gastroenterologists, Dematologists, General Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Paediatrics Surgeons, Neuro Surgeons, Encologists, Obstetrics, Mental Health Experts, Psychiatrics experts, Experts in the treatment of ENT – Ear, Nose and Throat and Community Medicine among many other areas of medical fields.

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Ajayi confirmed to Treasure Newspaper that since year 2020, that his administration of the Federal Teaching Hospital has been able to produced in excess of over 50 Specialists in the hospital. 

“Our target is to be globally relevant. We want to be globally compliant and have global relevant”. 

The CMD speaking on the visit of the Online Media Chapel nodded to the versatility of the online platform, while expressing readiness to partner with members of the Chapel to project all activities of the hospital to the world.

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Also, the FETHI CMD, Professor Ajayi called on the Online Journalists not to cyber bully medical personnels. He added that Journalists should stop running down organizations and systems but check their facts correctly before publishing. 

Earlier, the Online Media Chapel of the Ekiti NUJ led by its Chairman, Comrade Ayodele Abere stated that the purpose of the visit was to familiarize the Online Chapel members with the management of the hospital, as they remain the only avenue that can properly project their activities.

He noted that the Online Chapel has become a versatile platform when compared to other media platforms.

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In his own words, “the purpose of our visit is to familiarize ourselves with your establishment. Online Chapel has become an indispensable platform that even the Federal Teaching Hospital can’t do without.

“The Online medium is very fast, compared to Radio and Print. You can share the news and everybody will be able to read news about the Hospital, even in abroad.

“It’s the major platform that can project you well and we are ready to work with you”, he concluded.

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