The University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) has increased the capacity of its mortuary from 72 to 460 chillers and introduced numbered compartments for improved identification and storage of bodies.
The Chief Medical Director (CMD) of UBTH, Mrs Idia Ize-Iyamu, disclosed this at a news conference on Wednesday in Benin after a facility tour of the hospital.
Ize-Iyamu said the renovated mortuary was also equipped with modern stretchers and other facilities to improve the handling and storage of bodies.
She said the hospital had constructed a new Multi-Faith Centre to provide a convenient place for people to perform interment rites according to their religious backgrounds.
According to her, the facility could be used by people of any faith who found it convenient for such purposes.
Ize-Iyamu said the hospital had also revitalised its previously abandoned oxygen plant, which now produced about 160 cylinders of oxygen daily.
She said the Paediatric Outpatient Clinic had been renovated with additional seating, child-friendly toilets and facilities for mothers to attend to their children.
The CMD added that a premium renal dialysis unit had been created for patients requiring expedited services, while the regular renal unit had also been improved.
She said the Special Investigations Unit had been moved to a more spacious facility for ultrasound, electrocardiography, echocardiography, electroencephalography, stress tests and lung-function tests.
Ize-Iyamu said UBTH also had a 160-slice CT scanner donated by the Japanese Government, which provided faster and higher-resolution imaging than the equipment previously available at the hospital.
She added that the Oncology Unit had a linear accelerator for radiotherapy treatment of cancer patients.
The CMD said the hospital had also renovated the Accident and Emergency patients’ waiting area and improved the security post.
She said solar-powered lights had been installed across the clinical and residential areas to improve safety and security within the hospital.
Ize-Iyamu said the geriatric ward had also been improved to provide a more comfortable environment for elderly patients.
She added that the surgeons’ relaxation area and pantry had been renovated to provide a better working environment for medical staff.
According to her, the interventions were aimed at improving patients’ experience and creating a more conducive environment for staff.
She said the hospital had also refurbished its Comprehensive Health Centre in Udo, Ovia South-West Local Government Area, to extend healthcare services to underserved communities.
Ize-Iyamu said the centre would host a free medical outreach targeting 5,000 people, alongside the commissioning of a dental centre.
Also speaking, Dr Philip Ugbodaga, Medical Director, National Orthopaedic Hospital, Benin, who represented Daju Kachollom, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, commended the UBTH management for the improvements recorded.
Ugbodaga said the facility tour enabled participants to see the projects and assess their impact on healthcare delivery.
He described the improvements as evidence of prudent management of available resources and said they had strengthened the hospital’s capacity to provide specialised healthcare services.
Ugbodaga commended Ize-Iyamu as the first female CMD of UBTH, saying her performance demonstrated the value of providing women with opportunities to lead major institutions.
He urged members of staff of the hospital to support the management in sustaining the improvements and advancing healthcare delivery.
Earlier, the facility tour took participants through the renovated security post, Accident and Emergency complex, patients’ waiting area, mortuary, renal unit, Paediatric Outpatient Clinic, oxygen plant and geriatric ward.
The tour also covered the surgeons’ relaxation area, pantry, Special Investigations Unit and Oncology Unit.
The facility tour formed part of activities aimed at giving participants first-hand information on improvements in infrastructure, equipment and patient-care facilities at UBTH.
