The conjoined twins airlifted by NAF Airlift’s erstwhile back to Yenagoa after separation surgery at FMC, Yola.

By Umar Yusuf – Yola

The Federal Medical Centre, Yola, has successfully separated another conjoined twins, the third in the series of such feat.

Such successful separations of conjoined twins were carried out in the hospital in 2013, 2018 and 2020, under the leadership of the Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Professor Auwal Abubakar.

The latest conjoined twins were brought from Yenogoa, in Bayelsa State in the Niger Delta, of the poor parents of unemployed secondary leavers, Mr Raphael Ayebaiemi and Mrs Godsgift Ibiyyefa.

At an elaborate occasion to celebrate the grand feat and mark the discharge of the patients at the hospital premises in Yola, weekend, the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Professor Awwal Abubakar, noted that the success was attained as a result of the interventions of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, (SGF), Boss Mustapha, the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd and Emeka Offor foundation who donated modern equipment that enabled the hospital to carry out the operation.

During the case presentation, Abubakar noted that the twins were delivered on December 12, 2019, through a cesarean section at Bayelsa State and were taken to FMC Yenagoa after they were identified to be conjoined and were stabilised.

He noted that the management of the FMC Yenagoa contacted the FMC Yola for the surgery which they agreed to perform noting that transporting the twins presented a challenge as the conjoined twins cannot transport via a commercial flight because of some inherent challenges and psychological effect.

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Abubakar thanked the Nigeria Air Force (NAF), for offering to transport them to Yola free of charge noting that they were brought to Yola when they were only 23 days old.

The CMD noted that since they were brought to Yola, the FMC took charge of them free of charge which also culminated into the surgery which was also conducted free of charge.

He noted that the incursion of COVID-19 pandemic caused a delay of the surgery as the hospital shutdown surgeries as only emergency surgeries are done.

Abubakar also thanked the Yola German hospital for availing their CT and MRI machines free of charge for the benefit of the conjoined twins.

He noted that the conjoined twins who have many separate organs however shared only one liver noting that the team of surgeons have to go around such that challenge.

The CMD noted that since the surgery on August 20, 2020, they have recuperated very fast and started playing just after three days and where discharged on the fifth day after the operation.

He called on the federal and state governments to expand health insurance scheme to cover the informal sector, increase budgetary provisions to the health sector in line with the world approved best practices and also called on well to do individuals to come to the aide of the all-important sector.

The twins’ father, Mr Raphael Ayebaieni in his remarks said he  was short of words to express his gratitude to the Federal
Medical Centre Yola, the Nigerian Airforce and others who contributed to making the operation a success.

Vanguard News Nigeria.