16th August, 2017
The Sokoto State Government on Wednesday pledged increased partnership with surgeons on sponsorship of specialised plastic surgeries, burns related treatments and manpower training in the country.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Balarabe Kakale, made the pledge at the opening of the 23th Scientific Conference and Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Nigerian Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons (NAPRAS) and 11th Nigerian Burn Injuries Society (NBIS) in Sokoto.
Kakale, who was represented by the Director of Medical Services, Dr Bashir Jabo, described the conference as a right step in the right direction considering the availability of the needed manpower in plastic surgery in the state.
“I am optimistic that the conference will offer great help to professionals in providing various platforms for experienced sharing and overcoming some challenges in the field.
“ The resolutions will assist in addressing manpower needs and maximum utility of our specialists present in the country that will also stop patronising foreign services by Nigerians,’’ Kakale said.
The commissioner said the present administration in the state had established and upgraded hospitals with modern equipment in its efforts toward enhancing healthcare delivery.
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He enjoined healthcare providers to safeguard the equipment and optimise their use.
In his remark, the Vice Chancellor, Usmanu Danfodio University Sokoto (UDUS), Prof. Abdullahi Zuru, also pledged the university’s partnership with professional bodies on researches.
“The nation is awaiting your conference results to put into practice for the generality of human beings,’’ Zuru said.
The Chief Medical Director of UDUS Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Dr Yakubu Ahmad, represented by the Chairman Medical Advisory Committee of the institution, Dr Anas Sabir, enjoined Nigerians to patronise services of medical experts available in the country.
Ahmad described the body of plastic surgeons and burns as specialised professionals that can compete with others across the globe.
The President of NAPRAS, Prof. Jimoh Olabanji, said the conference was a fallout of the organisation’s previous leaders to exploit opportunities in the area of experience sharing and professional deliberations.
Olabanji called on governments at all levels to join hands with health care professionals in multiplying the number of medical experts in the country and in harnessing the country’s potentials in the health sector.
In his contribution, the National President of NBIS, Prof. Samuel Adebola, emphasised the need for systematic compilation of data on burns and causes of related occurrences.
He urged the federal government to increase the number of burns-specialised treatment centres in the six geopolitical zones in the country and equip them.