The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, (NIPR) Rivers State Chapter has called on the management of University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) to lead the advocacy for the adherence to the treatment of gunshot wounds Act 2017 to save lives.
State Chairman, NIPR, Pastor Paulinus Nsirim stated this on Wednesday when the body paid a courtesy visit to the Chief Medical Director, UPTH, Prof Henry Ugboma in the hospital.
Pastor Nsirim who is also the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Communications said NIPR is aware that the Act provides for the compulsory treatment of victims of gunshot wounds and reporting of such to the nearest Police stations within two hours.
The Chairman, who commended the CMD for restoring service delivery, industrial peace and cordial relationships to the hospital, said NIPR would support the building of reputation House and the training of members to be in tune with current trends in public relations in ‘this fast-changing global village’.
Pastor Nsirim also lauded Prof. Ugboma for improving on the supply of power in the hospital and increasing the internally generated revenue (IGR) of the teaching hospital.
He noted that NIPR derived the power to register, regulate and monitor members which exclusively forms professional public relations workforce in Nigeria.
The Permanent Secretary lauded the management of UPTH for appointing Mr Kem Daniel Elebiga, a seasoned NIPR member, as its public relations officer.
According to him: “We are to attract stakeholders like your organisation to collectively build common aspirations through the use of time-tested public relations skills and techniques”.
Earlier, the Chief Medical Director UPTH, Prof Henry Ugboma said the visit was significant as the hospital is gradually restoring its lost glory by taking steps to improve on critical areas of service delivery and cultivating good working relationships with key stakeholders.
Ugboma assured NIPR that UPTH would rub minds and explore areas of possible cooperation to restore a good and positive image of the hospital.
