AAUA: Our Health Centre has significantly improved

From Roland Bayode, Deborah Omoare

Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), has denied reports that its Health Centre operates ‘below expectation’.

The management is reacting to a CAMPUSLIFE cover story on the second of this month where some CAMPUSLIFE correspondents interviewed some students of the institution that shared mixed views about the state of the facility.

Director of the Health Centre, Dr Mathew Igboku, admitted that things were once rough at the centre, adding that at present, the situation has improved.

Speaking with CAMPUSLIFE, Igboku said the Health Centre has just introduced a new scheme known as Tertiary Institute Social Health Insurance Programme (TSHIP), which aims at ensuring adequate and proper treatment of students.

According to him, every student is expected to pay certain amount of money for the scheme, which is already included in their school fees.

Said Igboku: “In the past, we did not have enough drugs to give to patients but things are different now.

“Every student is expected to pay for TSHIP, which is written somewhere on the school fee receipt. This takes care of the drugs we give to students. The good thing about this scheme is that we use money gotten from TSHIP to treat students who have not paid their school fees and those who have paid.

Through TSHIP, we now have a good and regular supply of drugs. Therefore, the problem of sourcing for money to buy drugs is gone.”

Igboku disclosed that the scheme also covers the treatment of severe cases like minor surgery and the likes.

He added: “Another thing I need to clarify is that when we refer a patient to the state hospital, the person does not have to pay for anything if he or she has paid the school fees.

This is also under the TSHIP arrangement. The state hospital will send the bill to the organisation covering the health centre, which is known as Health Maintenance Organisation.

This organisation will pick up the bill. At the health centre, we have performed minor surgeries, cured tooth problems and other significant treatments.”

TSHIP covers almost all the drugs that a patient needs, but if there is need for any specific drug, and it is not under the coverage of TSHIP, then the patient can talk to his/her guardian. Also, if it is something we cannot do at the Health Centre, we would refer the patient to a state hospital,” he explained.

He advised students to henceforth the facility regularly.

“It must be noted that we attend to only emergency from 2:00pm.

“If you have catarrh and come to the Health Centre to complain at the wrong time, you will be given only paracetamol. If you have any complaint, come between the hours of 8a.m. and 2p.m. Students should come to the centre at the right time, but if it is an emergency, you can come anytime.

“However, if a patient that has not paid his/her school fees and is being referred (that is not an emergency case), the hospital will find it difficult sending the person’s bills to HMO, and the amount they pay if a patient is being referred to a state hospital is more than N2000. So, we implore students to pay their TSHIP dues because it has many advantages,“ he added.