Tag: UCTH

By BANNERNEWS Reporter, Calabar

The University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) is witnessing a growing influx of patients from neighbouring countries, including Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and the Central African Republic, seeking specialised medical treatment.

Chief Medical Director of UCTH, Prof. Ikpeme Ikpeme, disclosed this on Friday while conducting journalists round the 850-bed tertiary hospital, where 10 wards and several theatres have recently been remodelled.

He said the Federal Government had in recent times focused attention on the hospital with the release of substantial funds for the purchase of modern medical equipment and other facilities aimed at improving healthcare delivery.

According to him, UCTH remains the only tertiary health institution serving the whole of Cross River State, in addition to attending to patients from neighbouring states and countries.

“We are the only hospital that serves the whole of Cross River State at tertiary level. In addition, we get patients from neighbouring states. We even get patients from neighbouring countries such as Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and Central African Republic,” he said.

Prof. Ikpeme explained that many foreign patients visit the hospital for hip and knee replacements, brain tumour surgeries, keyhole surgeries and other specialist procedures unavailable in their countries.

He noted that the increasing number of patients has created space constraints within the hospital, adding that management had commenced expansion projects to address the challenge.

“This is why we are trying to increase our capacity with the construction of another 406-bed Department of Emergency Medicine. It will contain a trauma bay, medical and surgical bays, male, female and children wards, a six-bed Intensive Care Unit, a neonatal intensive care unit and three large trauma theatres,” he stated.

The CMD said UCTH had maintained a comparative advantage in specialised medicine due to its modern equipment, skilled personnel and advanced training.

“Take orthopaedics for instance, we do knee replacements, arthroscopy and sports medicine. We can replace the anterior cruciate ligament because we have the equipment, personnel and training.

“We also carry out keyhole surgeries. If your uterus is giving you problems, we can remove it through a one-centimetre incision using cameras and telescopes. Even appendix surgeries can be done and the patient discharged the following day,” he said.

The journalists were shown round some of the remodeled wards, theatres and refurbished halls, offices and general reception halls, which the CMD profusely commended the federal government.

He said the plan is to refurbish the entire facility but appeals to stakeholders and even private citizens to equally identify projects which, of course, would be named after them on completion.

He said many of the remodeled wards are named after former or senior colleagues who had invested their entire professional lives in the facility to heal patients and mentor younger generations.

That way, he believed, their legacies would truly be indelible.

 

 

By BANNERNEWS Reporter

Chief Dr. Henry Onwe, Chairman of the Cross River State Businessmen’s Forum, has urged caution over the recent motion by the House of Representatives calling on the Federal Government to suspend the Chief Medical Director of University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), Dr. Ikpeme A. Ikpeme.

In a statement released in Calabar on Friday, Chief Onwe described the House’s resolution as “hasty, harsh and unrealistic,” noting that lawmakers acted without conducting any investigation into allegations that the CMD showed ethnic bias in the posting of some medical graduates for housemanship.

The motion was moved by Mr. Iduma Igariwey, representing Afikpo South/Afikpo North Federal Constituency of Ebonyi State.

He highlighted that claims circulating in public discourse suggested Prof. Ikpeme acted along ethnic lines in assigning internship postings.

“Acting on such allegations without careful scrutiny is counterproductive,” Onwe said, stressing the need for fairness and due process.

Chief Onwe criticised the House for failing to give all parties, including the CMD, the opportunity to present their positions.

“For a body of the status of the National Assembly, painstaking investigation must precede any decision or action,” he said, stressing that equity, fair play, and justice must guide the process.

He pointed out that there is no evidence the affected house officers had direct interaction with Prof. Ikpeme concerning their placements, and that claims of a meeting with him remain contested.

“There is also no proof he made any statement rejecting anyone on tribal grounds,” Onwe added, noting that the CMD is the only person authorised to speak for UCTH—a point overlooked by the House.

Referring to the Nigerian Constitution, Onwe emphasised that the country’s foundation rests on natural justice and the Federal Character Principle, which mandates that all government agencies reflect Nigeria’s diversity to promote unity and prevent dominance by any ethnic or regional group.

He further questioned the process behind the postings, asking who authorised them, the criteria used, why most postings went to a single region, and how equity and national spread would be ensured.

Onwe argued that answers to these questions could have guided the House to a measured and lasting decision.

Onwe also challenged claims linking the CMD’s actions to brain drain, noting that doctors who complete housemanship in Nigeria often migrate abroad regardless.

He said blaming Dr. Ikpeme for the shortage of medical personnel is “giving a dog a bad name just to hang it.”

The Cross River State leader criticised the House for relying solely on media reports without consulting relevant professional bodies such as the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) and the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) in Calabar.

He noted that the doctors involved had already commenced training before the motion was adopted.

Chief Onwe called on Cross River lawmakers to intervene, ensure justice for Dr. Ikpeme, and urge the House to conduct a thorough investigation before any action.

He also appealed to the Federal Government to stay any suspension, stressing the importance of dialogue, truth, and due process in matters that could deepen divisions.