Healthcare boost as Wike’s N26bn cancer, nuclear medicine centre opens in Port Harcourt
…As governor blames wrong budgeting for FG’S project failures
The much-awaited cancer centre in Port Harcourt built with N26billion has been thrown open to members of the public, though US Consulate officials are still helping to source world-class managers.
The centre, named after the former governor of Rivers State, Peter Odili, himself a medical doctor, owner of a hospital, and now founder of a medical university, has three theatres, a catheterisation laboratory, a radio therapy unit, a brachy therapy unit and a nuclear medicine unit.
A radio-therapy machine uses high doses of radiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. This particular machine sends patients from the southsouth to Lagos and Abuja, but medical sources said only two places offers the service in Nigeria until the arrival of this Port Harcourt unit.
Brachytherapy is indicated as a type of internal radiation therapy that is often used to treat cancers of the head and neck, breast, cervix, prostate, and eye. “Brachytherapy is a type of internal radiation therapy in which seeds, ribbons, or capsules that contain a radiation source are placed in your body, in or near the tumor.”
But, nuclear medicine is said to be a subspecialty of radiology which involves the use of radioactive medication (radiopharmaceuticals) to diagnose and treat disease.
The Rivers State Commissioner of Health, a professor, Princewill Chike,
explained details, saying there are doctor’s quarters, helipad, modern incinerators, 1000 & 800 KVA generators in series to power the centre.
Wike invited the Emir of Kano, Aminu Ado Bayero, to commission the centre 72bed centre named the ‘Dr. Peter Odili Cancer/cardiovascular Diagnostic and Treatment Centre.’
The governor used the opportunity to reveal why FG projects usually remain uncompleted for decades, and blamed it on budgeting system. He said he used only 14 months to start and finish such a gigantic project.
He gave one particular reason thus: “That is for a project that will cost N26BN, you are putting N500 million in the budget for one year. Then, it will now take you more than 20 years to achieve it. By then,
the cost will move up from N26BN to over N100BN.
“That is why you see in this country abandonment of projects. If we are serious in this country to say that we will get the best, I can tell you that it is not impossible.”
Wike stressed that the Rivers people deserve the best, which, is why the best quality has been delivered at the cancer centre, similar to the best quality delivered on all other projects.
Wike informed that already, there is partnership arrangement going on based on the strength of the understanding brokered with the United States Consul General, Will Stevens.
The governor said Stevens had visited the hospital and is currently making contacts with people who know how best to
run hospitals profitably, which will be considered to take over the operations of the centre.
He also explained that the facility was named after Dr. Peter Odili because he is one Rivers leader who had operated one of the best clinics in the State, served as governor meritoriously and now contributing to medical education in the state.
Performing the inauguration of the project, the Emir of Kano commended what he called the sagacity and foresight of Wike for initiating and actualising such novel project.
He noted that the centre, which is the very first of its kind in the Niger Delta and Nigeria as a whole, will surely benefit people beyond the boundaries of the South-south region and even Kano.