Janet Ogundepo The Federal Government has built a new medical centre in Epe, Lagos State, bringing the number of Federal Medical Centres in the state to two. Before the establishment of the new facility in Epe, the Federal Government had on November 23, 1964, commissioned the Federal Medical Centre, Ebute-metta. FMC Ebute-Metta was formerly called the Nigerian Railway Hospital and was upgraded to a FMC on January 31, 2005.
Aside from the FMC in Epe, two other new FMCs were built, one in Misau, Bauchi State and the other in Ikole-Ekiti, Ekiti State. However, the FMC in Epe and Misau will each have a nursing school. The three additional FMCs bring the total number of FMCs in the country to 26.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, the FG said that the establishment of the new FMCs was to alleviate the strain on existing healthcare facilities and an effort towards achieving Universal Health Coverage. The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja during the presentation of appointment letters to the acting medical directors of FMC Epe, Dr Adeleke Kaka and FMC Misau, Dr Rufa’i Dachi. Alausa said that the establishment of the two institutions was crucial for national development.
He added that President Bola Tinubu approved the establishment of three federal medical centres to offer specialised medical care, attract skilled healthcare professionals, and provide a platform for cutting-edge medical research in the countr.