Patients across public hospitals in Ondo, Osun, and Ekiti States are facing severe healthcare disruptions due to staff shortage and lack of essential drugs.
The patients said shortage of health workers and drugs were affecting medical services in hospitals across the three states.
They appealed to their respective state government to tackle severe manpower shortages and high medication costs in order to save more lives.
A patient at the Ondo State Specialist Hospital in Okitipupa, Julius Adegoroye, noted that the hospital is facing a severe workforce crisis, rendering the patients vulnerable.
“How can few doctors and nurses be attending to lots of patients, many of the patients are in serious pains and needed attention but shortage of health workers is affecting their services,” Adegoroye said.
Another patient, Iyabo Akinugba, lamented that the rising cost of medications outside hospitals is a major crisis which often lead to an increase in non-adherence, worsened health conditions, and in some tragic cases, fatalities.
She said: “After attending to you, they ask you to buy drugs from pharmacies outside the hospital which is very expensive and this is really taking a toll on patients.
“This is government hospital and this is the place for common man. Although nobody prays to be sick but it’s inevitable, I appeal to government to restore this facility back to its former years for citizens to enjoy its free healthcare services.”
Similarly in Osogbo, the capital of Osun State, an elderly woman, Abibatu Igbalaye, who was at the maternity ward of the Osun State General Hospital to support her daughter after childbirth, commended the hospital for providing free healthcare services.
Igbalaye, however, noted that patients were required to provide delivery kits and other consumables used during treatment.
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A medical practitioner, Dr Ayorinde Adewale, identified the acute shortage of health professionals in the general hospitals as a major challenge in the sector.
According to him, many specialist doctors, including neurosurgeons, cardiologists, and oncologists, have left the country due to poor remuneration and conditions of service.
He warned that the remaining doctors were overworked and underpaid, adding that the trend could discourage professionals from working in public hospitals.
The Public Relations Officer of Osun State University Teaching Hospital, Abimbola Idowu, stated that the hospital was performing well in healthcare delivery through improved facilities, skilled personnel, and patient-centred care.
Idowu added that the hospital remains committed to delivering efficient and accessible healthcare services.
Also speaking, the Chief Medical Director of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex (OAUTHC), Prof. John Okeniyi, called for improved funding to address infrastructural and operational challenges in public hospitals.
Okeniyi noted that the “Japa” syndrome and industrial disputes are affecting service delivery, appealing for increased government intervention.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of Ekiti State Hospital Management Board, Dr Austine Ibikunle, said the state government had started the construction of three new general hospitals in Awo Ekiti, Ikogosi Ekiti, and Ipao Ekiti.
Ibikunle said the construction was part of broader health sector reforms towards fortifying the state health sector with necessary equipment and personnel in meeting up with international standards.
