The Rivers State Ministry of Health has sealed two health facilities in Abuloma, Port Harcourt, for operating without proper registration and violating medical standards.
The enforcement team visited Shilow Hospital on Jetty Road following a request from the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Health, Dr Ekem Emmanuel John, for an investigation into a medical report issued by the facility.
The investigation revealed that the three-bed hospital had poor sanitary conditions, lacked registration and had no licensed medical practitioner on duty. Officials also discovered that it operated under two different names and had no records to support the medical report it issued.
The facility was sealed, while its operator was summoned for further investigation.
The team also shut down Eli Nath Hospital at Bitterleaf Junction, Abuloma, over substandard facilities and illegal operations.
According to the ministry, the hospital, converted from a row of shops, had substandard theatres and a labour room located by the roadside. It was also allegedly operated by a Community Health Extension Worker (CHEW) who obtained a medical practitioner’s licence to register the facility.
The practitioner accused of allowing the use of the licence has been reported to the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria for investigation.
Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association’s National Antiquackery Committee, Dr Hope Avundaa, reaffirmed the ministry’s commitment to enforcing medical standards.
He urged health facility operators to renew their Certificates of Minimum Standard to avoid fines and other penalties.
