‘Half of Nigerian hospital equipment out of service’

A multinational corporation, General Electric, has said half of Nigerian hospital equipment is out of service.

It said the challenge had put a strain on local health care delivery efforts, and affected the wellbeing of the people in the country.

The corporation said this during the inauguration of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital Biomedical Training Centre, a statement said on Wednesday.

General Electric, which refurbished and equipped the centre through the General Electric Foundation, inaugurated the centre at the Federal School of Biomedical Engineering Technology in Lagos.

The statement said, “The inauguration is in fulfillment of a commitment made by the GE Foundation to work with other stakeholders in developing a new Biomedical Equipment Technician Training project in Nigeria to address a major need for locally qualified medical technicians to repair and service biomedical equipment.

“In the first year of running this programme, about 19 technicians and engineers have been trained. Statistics show that between 50 and 80 per cent of medical equipment are usually out of service in low-income countries, according to the World Health Organisation.

“In Nigeria, 50 per cent of hospital equipment is out of service, which puts added strain on local health care delivery.”

The Chief Executive Officer of Lifecare Solutions/Health Care Systems at GE, Thierry Leclercq, said the company hoped to assist Nigeria in addressing some of the health care challenges through the technical training.

“This capacity-building programme delivers a structured curriculum and develops a pipeline of locally- accredited engineers. We are pleased to collaborate with the Nigerian Ministry of Health and Engineering World Health in helping to address these challenges in Nigeria,” he said.

The Chief Medical Director of LUTH, Prof. Christopher Bode, commended the corporation for the gesture.

Bode, who was represented by Prof. Olufemi Fasanmade, said “Local institutions and providers own the process of training technicians and, as a result, build their community’s confidence in the local health system.

“In the end, this will help maximise the value of donated equipment in the region and dramatically break down this barrier to the delivery of care.”

Punch