Martins Ifijeh
As part of efforts to reduce maternal, newborn and child deaths in Lagos State, the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Official, COWLSO, led by the wife of the governor of Lagos State, Mrs. Bolanle Ambode, has donated Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and Neo-natal hearing equipments to five general hospitals in the state.
The beneficiary hospitals are the Lagos Island Maternity, Gbagada General Hospital, Badagry General Hospital, Ikorodu General Hospital and the Maternal and Child Centre, IfakoIjaye General Hospital.
Speaking at the official inauguration of the equipments in Lagos Island Maternity, the First Lady said the ICU upgrading was one of the major health interventions of the body for 2017.
She said with the drive to combat maternal mortality rate in the state continue to record tangible progress, there was the need to tackle un-booked ante-natal cases, which had become a major challenge in baby delivery process.
“A good number of such cases come in extreme conditions, which without the existence of a well-equipped ICU, death seems inevitable for the mother, baby or both. Now and then, we hear of many pregnant women and their babies dying of conditions such as pregnancy-induced hypertension, convulsion or shock arising from post-delivery bleeding.
“A high number of such bad cases are referred from traditional birth attendants and faith-based homes. After effecting deliveries, subsequent proper care requiring intensive care, is always lacking,†she said.
The First Lady stated that until government’s advocacy of regular attendance of ante-natal care services was heeded by expectant mothers and that until there was early referral from TBAs, faith-based organissations and primary healthcare centres, an ICU would always be needed to save more lives.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris, said since the inception of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s administration, the choice of Lagos Island Maternity Hospital as a beneficiary for targeted interventions by COWLSO had been very apt, given the health facility’s current position as the apex referral public facility for obstetric cases.
Chairman, Committee on Health Services, Lagos State House of Assembly, Olusegun Olulade, appreciated COWLSO for the gesture.
