Patients can’t afford us if we charge according to our expertise —CMD, UCH

Professor Temitope Alonge

The Chief Medical Director of University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Professor Temitope Alonge, has stated that if the institution decided to bill patients according to the expertise of the institutions, patients won’t be able to afford them.

The CMD explained that the UCH shares a common interest and ‘stigma’ with the Nigerian Tribune, being the oldest newspaper in Nigeria because “people tend to wrongly attribute old age to poor performance, but what has been seen as a stigma has rightly turned to a legacy of some sort.

“I asked my team to give me the Nigerian Tribune newspaper daily and no matter how tired I am, I always read the Tribune and likewise, no matter how free I am, there are some newspapers I don’t read.

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“UCH has stood out over the years as reproducing healthcare professionals around Nigeria and we have spread our success to other parts of Africa like the Cote d’ Ivoire, Ghana, Sierra Leone among others.”

Professor Alonge also added that “At 60, UCH has stood the test of time and it is a time the world knows how far we have fared. If we have to charge our patients according to our delivery and expertise, I’m sure only a few would be able to afford us. But thanks to the government that has been able to take care of some things.

“We don’t have the wherewithal to make a lot of noise about our achievements and the choice of the Nigerian Tribune, the oldest in news reportage as far as print journalism in Nigeria to help us on this mission is a no-brainer,” he said.

Responding Mr Dickson stated that ignorance and lack of adequate information have kept people in the dark on the strides of UCH.

“There are a lot of information about UCH that people don’t know about; I have seen workers at the hospital worked tirelessly round the clock to save lives, but if you don’t visit, you would not know. So many lives have been saved here at the Nigerian Tribune owing to the selfless service rendered at the UCH.

“Like the Nigerian Tribune, UCH has also helped cement the future of Nigeria in medicine by engaging and training young medical students.

“We are happy to partner with the hospital before, during and after the 60th anniversary and we want to say our congratulations to the management of UCH for this landmark achievement,”

Mr Dickson hinted that in a couple of days, the Nigerian Tribune would commission its multiple stories Abuja Business complex and factory that will help further propagate news and information to Northern parts of the country.