By SOLA OGUNDIPE
THERE are better days ahead for patients at the  Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, Idi Araba, Lagos, courtesy of an independent power plant initiative to augment supply from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN.

Towards this end, public proposals for a power purchase agreement issued by the hospital management in the bid to curtail the culture of epileptic power supply  as part of measures to ensure continuous supply of electricity under the ongoing Power Sector Reform agenda.

According to the institution’s Head of  Corporate Affairs and Communication, Mrs Hope Nwawolo, efforts are on to facilitate quick take off of the power plant to ensure continuous supply of electricity at the health institution.

According to Nwawolo, in recent times, LUTH has constantly experienced inadequate power supply as a result of repeated outages from the PHCN. She said cumulatively, the hospital had only 10 days of power supply or an equivalent of 240 hours in the whole of December 2011.

In compensating for the shortfall, she said the designated power generators at several points within the hospital complex had to be run almost continuously causing some of the generating plants to break down under the stress.

“However, all the generators are functional now, but the idea of an independent power plant is to ensure availability of power 24 hours a day, seven days a week without reliance on PHCN,” Nwawolo remarked while assuring of patients and the public in general of the institution’s determination to rise up to challenges while offering quality health care

Every month, the LUTH expends an average of N9 million on diesel  to run its generators