By Chidi Nkwopara

These are not the best of times for Imo State University Teaching Hospital, IMSUTH, Umuna, Orlu. The situation is even worse for the medical students, as their fate now hangs on the balance.

Investigation by South East Voice revealed that the College of Medical Sciences has been having varying and periodic problems, arising from poor funding, inadequate medical equipment, inadequate staff disposition, loss of accreditation and lots more.

Some of the students, who spoke to South East Voice on strict grounds of anonymity, revealed that some of them have already spent 10 or more years than the prescribed duration for their respective courses.

It was also gathered from one of the aggrieved students that “the medical students have literally been suffering and smiling, as if nothing was wrong with the system”.

IMSUTH

The sordid plight of the students again, took the front burner within the past week, when South East Voice stumbled on a letter, MDCN/621/Vol.II/74, dated December 13, 2016, addressed to the Vice Chancellor, VC, of Imo State University and signed by the Registrar of Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, MDCN, Dr. Abdulmumini A. Ibrahim.

The first paragraph of the letter read: “You will recall that Council visited your College of Health Sciences on Thursday, 10th November, 2016, at your instance. Having inspected your facilities and structures on ground, it was noted that there is the need to intensify more efforts in addressing areas that have shown signs of dilapidation, in other to give room for speedy development of the institution”.

Ibrahim particularly stated that IMSUTH “had acute shortage of manpower, especially in Pathology, general low patient load, structural defect in the Clinical Students Hostel and other deficiencies” as specified for each department.

“In view of this shortcoming, I am to inform you that there should be no more examinations for the Pharmacology, Therapeutics and Pathology Departments until all the observed deficiencies, especially in Pathology, are rectified within six months and Council invited for verification”, the MDCN Registrar directed.

Other departments expressly listed in Dr. Ibrahim’s letter includes Anatomy and Physiology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Paediatric Emergency Unit, Department of Radiology, Records and Pharmacy.

Apart from gross manpower deficiency in Microbiology, Haematology, Chemical Pathology, Morbid Anatomy, Histopathology, Forensic Pathology, the Council also mentioned other areas that must be rectified before the institution would be allowed to continue with the courses.

A credible source in the University told South East Voice that “the Vice Chancellor, Professor Adaobi Obasi, has not only acted on the MDCN mail on January 10, 2017, but has also instructed the Registrar to forward copies of the letter to the institution’s Visitor (the State Governor) and the Pro-Chancellor”.

Some concerned civil servants, who did not want their names in print, were unanimous that “the Council’s letter has put a lie on the claim that all was well in the state’s health sector”.

They were also of the opinion that “things may worsen if nothing was done to remedy the situation, at the end of six months”.

For one of the students, who wept bitterly as he tried to narrate their plight, said: “This is the sorry state of things in our beloved IMSUTH, Orlu. It has been canvassed in some quarters that the Governor is not doing anything in the Teaching Hospital because it is not on a busy road where people will readily see it and applaud.

“This is where Imo students that are said to be enjoying free education are learning and will return to practice. This is also where government’s health emergency service will take patients to.

“The view of of most of our students is that the money spent in building one of the so called 27 general hospitals can give IMSUTH a facelift. Honestly, I have no kind words for those that have been deceiving Imo people”.

A spirited effort to get the government side to this story failed, as the Commissioner for Information, Tourism and Public Utilities, Engr. Obinna Nshirim, neither picked his calls or responded to the text message sent to him.

A flicker of hope, which reared its head when the Commissioner for Health, Women Affairs and Social Development, Barrister Ngozi Njoku, suddenly died as she claimed that she was yet to sight the letter from the MDCN.

The Commissioner still failed to react to the inquiry, even after South East Voice mailed the documents to her, via WhatsApp.