Plateau Specialist Hospital Takes Delivery of 100 New Hospital Matrasses, Hospital Beds and Pilows Courtesy of Governor Mutfwang’s commitment to improve Healthcare in the State

The Plateau State Specialist Hospital has received the first phase of hospital intervention in order to ensure that patients enjoy a conducive recovery environment. This was disclosed by the Chief Medical Director, Plateau Specialist Hospital Prof Christopher Yilgwan on Wednesday 14th June 2024 at the hospital premises in Jos. While taking delivery of the items from the contractor together with his management team, Prof Yilgwan thanked Governor Caleb Manasseh Mutfuwang for continuously doing his best for the hospital.

“We want to thank the Executive Governor Plateau State His Excellency Barrister Caleb Manasseh Mutfuwang for what he’s been doing to the hospital since he assumed leadership of the state. What you’re seeing here is part of his commitment in revamping healthcare in the state…we just received a hundred hospital matrasses with a hundred beds. This is unprecedented because in the last ten years or so or more, this hospital has not received this quantity or kind of gesture.”

“You know, most of the mattresses the patients are lying on, more than 20 years old. Some are already even creating problems for the patients as they come on admission. A lot of the beds are in dilapidated states. It’s affecting both the nurses, the doctors, and all the people taking care of the patient and also the patients themselves. So we are glad to have this.”

Prof Yilgwan also spoke on the importance of the intervention to the hospital and people of Plateau State. “Plateau Hospital is the apex hospital of the states. It caters for 60% of the patients in town who seek care because our charges are very moderate. So most of the people in the lower room actually come here to get health care. So we’re doing all within our power to ensure that apart from the remedial measures, we’re able to find a lasting solutions.”

“This is the first phase. We’re also expecting, you know, some, you know, that will be brought in, you know, after this. But for the meantime, 50% of those who are very bad inform about 50% of the beds in the hospital. So that’s what you’re looking at…if you’re conversant with Plateau Hospital before I came, you agree with me that the hospital is actually on an upward trajectory…with what we have brought to bear, with the click of the button, we would be able to tell you and even give you a distribution of the kind of patients. So we completed that and hopefully in coming days, we’ll be inviting all of you to come, you know, and support his excellency in commissioning that.”

Prof Yilgwan gave further updates on improvements in the hospital’s servic. “…we’ve also worked on the water network before now, you know, that water has been a very big issue with us. Now. I remember some time back, people have been carrying buckets and pills to fight in wells. Some of you carried those news. But if you walk around in the hospital, you will see that, you know, we have a new motorized borehole donated…Patients don’t have to, you know, work about carrying buckets, you know, fetching water on their aheads. We’ve dealt with that.”

Speaking on the commitment of the Governor of Plateau State in giving the hospital infrastructural lift, personnel development and effective healthcare delivery, Prof Yilgwan emphasized that Governor Mutfwang was interested in improving all aspects of the hospital, including its infrastructure. “Now, the infrastructure itself is one big issue. That His Excelleny is committed to changing. If you go around, you notice that most of the infrastructure are several decades old. Possibly, maybe that’s even why the Eight-man quarters fell victim to the rainstorm. So there is a plan for rebuilding this whole structure. You know, having a new plateau state specialist hospital. The architectural designs have been finished. The structural designs are almost being completed. We’re waiting for a simulation exercise…”

“We have brought in specialists, consultants in different fields, about 23 new consultants. Before now, we didn’t have a single ophthalmologist resident within the hospital. We only had one surgeon. Now we don’t just have three more, you know, on ground, we have specialist surgeons in Urological surgery. We are looking at people who can do Laparoscopic surgeries for BPH without opening the patients we have in the hospital. We have people, cardiologists, who have been employed for the hospital and pathologists. So the hospital is taking its shape as a specialist hospital, and we are hoping that as we move, you know, we would leverage on these gains, you know, to improve healthcare.”

“We’re looking at a situation where, you know, healthcare will be seamless. Patients will not have to wait hours or weeks or days. Especially when they come here. We are looking at a situation where we will be having a data driven decision making process for healthcare in this state. And we are hoping that as we start here at the apex hospital, we will divest to the general hospitals, to the PHCs, so that we can have a seamless referral system such that by the time we’re halfway into this first tenure, we should be able to use data to take health policy decisions in the state. We should be able to know how much money should we commit to malaria? How much money should we commit to non communicable diseases? How much money should we commit to cancer, you know, like that. You know, but as it is now, we’re all doing guesswork, and we felt that is inappropriate, you know, since we’re in a digital age. So we should be hoping, you know, for more wins of the people and citizens of the states.”