Work has resumed at Unguwar Yelwa Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC), abandoned for over two years by the Kaduna State Government.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) had reported that members of the community had turned that abandoned site into public convenience and refuse dump since work stopped on the health centre in 2015.
The situation forced leaders in the area to allocate the community hall for use as temporary health centre.
The health workers offering services to women and children in the area, however, had to vacate the hall, when the community ejected them in protest over non commitment to complete the project by the government.
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However, Rahab Jacob, head of the facility, told NAN on Tuesday in Kaduna State that rehabilitation work at the health centre resumed in October 2018, and is now at over 90 percent completion stage.
Before then, she said, after their ejection from the community hall, they had to trace the contractor and beg him to clear part of the uncompleted health centre for them to offer skeletal services to pregnant women and children.
“Our moving in here was a local arrangement with the contractor, because we had to beg him to allow us move in so we can offer skeletal services to some patients.
“Most patients have stopped patronising us and owners of the town hall too are asking us to leave.
“We are now embarking on community outreach to sensitise residents and inform them that we have moved back to the Centre while the renovation work is being completed.
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” Most patients do not know we have relocated to the PHC; we lost so many patients while operating at the community hall due to lack of privacy.
“Only few are aware, so we want to embark on community outreach to sensitise them of our resumption of services at the centre,” Jacob said.
The official expressed optimism that the facility would soon be completed and full services would be restored.
“This will enable community members access health services within five to 10 minutes walk from their homes.”
She also appealed to the state government to provide furniture and other working tools for the centre to function well.
” We do not admit patients for now, because we do not have enough furniture and staff, as such running three shift would not work.”
Some of the residents commended the state government for the effort to complete the centre, saying it would help reduce maternal deaths in the area.
Mr Bala Abu, a resident, said he was happy with the level of work done to complete the health centre, adding that when fully completed it would reduce the time taken to access health services by residents.
“The town hall used as temporary site was not convenient with no privacy, and all emergencies had to be referred to other hospitals. We were all concerned.
“But now, we are all happy considering the progress so far, and expecting that full services would soon be restored in the centre when the renovation work is completed,” Abu said.
Mrs Mary Adamu, a mother, also applauded the government, saying that women in the community currently travelling long distances to access health care would heave a sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, Alhaji Bala Mohammed, the contractor handling the project, attributed the delay experienced in the course of the renovation work to non-release of funds by the state government.
He however assured that the health centre would soon be put to full use for the good of the community. (NAN)
