Oyebanji Calls on Health Workers to Embrace Compassion and Professionalism

Ekiti State’s Health Sector Investments Aim to Improve Rural Healthcare Access

Ekiti State Governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, has emphasized the importance of his administration’s significant investments in the health sector. These efforts are aimed at making quality healthcare more accessible and effective for people living in rural areas. The governor highlighted the need for improved healthcare infrastructure and services across the state.

During the inauguration of a renovated general hospital in Ifaki Ekiti, the governor was represented by the Deputy Governor, Mrs Monisade Afuye. She encouraged residents to take ownership of the health facilities in their communities and protect them from damage. The governor also urged healthcare workers to make the most of the modern equipment provided in government hospitals, ensuring they deliver care with compassion and uphold professional standards.

Oyebanji outlined the advanced equipment available in Ekiti State’s general hospitals, including:

• A theatre hall equipped with an anaesthesia machine, operating tables with accessories, instruments, and Mayo tables
• A mobile theatre operating light, suction pump, 300-watt diathermy, patient monitor, defibrillator, stainless steel cabinet, stretcher, IV poles, and light box

He reiterated his government’s commitment to raising the standard of healthcare in all towns and villages in Ekiti. He warned against self-medication, which could lead to untimely death or infirmity.

The Commissioner for Health, Dr Oyebanji Filani, represented by the Permanent Secretary, Hospitals Management Board, Dr Olasunkanmi Alabi, stated that the Oyebanji administration had renovated and equipped five general hospitals in the state. This initiative aims to make quality healthcare accessible at the grassroots level.

Filani noted that the following facilities have benefited from these improvements:

• Ilawe
• Oke Imesi
• Ifaki

He added that more facilities would follow. Filani expressed gratitude for the governor’s efforts, highlighting that the hospitals were not only renovated but also equipped with state-of-the-art technology.

In his remarks, the Olufaki of Ifaki Ekiti, Oba John Falore, praised the swift response of Governor Oyebanji to concerns about the previous poor condition of the hospital.

Additional Health Sector Support

In June 2023, Governor Oyebanji allocated N814 million to the 177 primary healthcare (PHC) facilities in Ekiti State. This funding was intended to help these facilities procure drugs, purchase equipment, and carry out renovations. The governor urged the facilities to develop work plans that would guide the use of the funds, emphasizing the importance of using them judiciously.

He stated, “It is important that these funds are used judiciously. Our focus must be to deploy these resources in a manner that is catalytic and complementary to existing programmes.”

This initiative was part of the World Bank-supported Impact Project in Ekiti State. During the flag-off event in Ado Ekiti, the governor handed over N4.6 million in cheques to each of the 177 PHC facilities, totaling N814.2 million.