Fears of Disease Outbreaks Prompt Emergency Measures
The University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital has stopped admitting new patients due to severe flooding impacting the facility. The flooding has raised serious concerns about contamination within the hospital and its surrounding environment. Health officials fear that contamination could lead to potential disease outbreaks among patients and staff. To prevent such outbreaks, the hospital has decided to halt new patient admissions until conditions improve.
Floodwaters Submerge Critical Facilities
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Prof. Ahmed Ahidjo, the hospital’s Chief Medical Director, revealed that floodwaters have severely impacted the facility. “I have been in this hospital for the last 35 years and I have never seen something like this,” he said. “The entire ground floor and all 14 specialized centers of excellence are flooded.”
Expensive Medical Equipment Damaged
Floodwaters have submerged many costly machines, including cancer treatment equipment, radiology devices, laboratory instruments, and kidney center machines. “These machines are very expensive,” Prof. Ahidjo noted. “All these machines are submerged in water.”
Suspension of New Admissions to Prevent Contamination
Due to the risk of contamination and hospital-acquired infections, the hospital has decided to halt new patient admissions.”We fear that patients may contract hospital-acquired infections and other diseases because floodwaters have inundated the hospital’s sewage system, causing sewage to mix into the hospital premises,” Prof. Ahidjo explained.
Emergency Operations Only
Currently, the hospital is only performing emergency operations. Hospital staff have relocated existing patients to upper floors for safety. “Another challenge we face is that the hospital’s oxygen plant is also flooded,” Prof. Ahidjo added, expressing concern over handling future emergencies.
Uncertain Path to Recovery
Assessing the full extent of the damage remains difficult. “It will be very challenging to categorically state the extent of the damage,” Prof. Ahidjo admitted. The hospital faces a daunting path to recovery as it grapples with unprecedented flooding and its aftermath.
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