Saddled with the responsibility of giving back to the society; part of the corporate social responsibility of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), was to erect an amenity ward to help ameliorate the infrastructural problems of the hospital, a project which was initiated in 2021 and now delivered this year 2023. The Amenity complex is a CBN intervention project aimed at boosting health care services and delivery in the South- South. A project attracted by the management team of the hospital led by the current CMD, Professor Henry Ugboma, to deliver health care services in an exquisite environment to curb medical tourism.
This project became a reality on the 20th of September, 2023 when the CMD, Professor Henry Ugboma and the management team of the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospita (UPTH)l took delivery of the Amenity ward complex. The Amenity ward stands close to the hospital’s Nuclear Medicine and Care of Elderly Persons Unit (CEPU) complex.
Leading the CBN team, Arc. Euphemia Lawal said the project which was awarded in 2021, had the contractors, engineering team and all who were involved in the project put in their very best to ensure the timely delivery of the project and this was done with support from the apex bank whilst also enjoying the corporation of the hospital management in order to have the project delivered in record time.
For Lawal, the project consists of the renovation of an 8-bed space Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and the construction of an Amenity complex. According to her, the building consists of dentistry wards, nursing station, administrative offices… She says this project was in line with the available budget of the CBN.
Welcoming his guests, Prof. Ugboma (CMD), while recognizing the effort of the CBN, says he is boastful and appreciates them for their timely pursuit and delivery of the project. Ugboma appreciated the CBN for siting the project in UPTH and said the project is in recognition of the patients/Nigerians it will serve. He charged the CBN team to “finish the good work they have started” as he noted “what we are taking over is the infrastructure, but equipping the place is most important” as the hospital has the medical expertise to manage patient’s health care needs. Professor Ugboma added “until this place is fully equipped, we have only met 30% of the job, without equipment we won’t function optimally ” appealing to the team to get back to the apex bank for more support as to the equipping.
High point of the ceremony was the cutting of the tape, handover of the key and documents, thereafter a tour of the Amenity ward complex, and the visit of the renovated 8-bed capacity ICU ward in the main hospital complex.
