BY SUNNY DAVID
The Anambra State Government has suspended two healthcare workers for unprofessional conduct and undermining Governor Charles Soludo’s healthcare initiatives.
The Officer-in-Charge at Ukpo Primary Healthcare Centre, Mrs Njideka Ezeihejiofor, was suspended without pay and demoted for refusing to treat a pregnant woman who subsequently delivered a stillborn baby outside the facility on February 11.
Mrs Ezeihejiofor claimed fatigue and fear prevented her from assisting the woman, even after the delivery.
A disciplinary panel chaired by the Commissioner for Health, Dr Afam Obidike, found her guilty of negligence, noting her failure to examine the patient or provide a referral, and highlighting the risk of life-threatening complications from a retained placenta.
Separately, Mrs Blessing Offor, a health worker at Uke Primary Healthcare Centre, was suspended indefinitely and ordered to repay eight months’ salary for consistent absenteeism.
These actions follow Governor Soludo’s September 2023 announcement of free antenatal care, delivery, and Cesarean sections for all pregnant women in the State.
Obidike emphasized the government’s commitment to quality healthcare and warned that such unprofessionalism would not be tolerated.
He urged health workers to either fulfil their duties or resign and encouraged residents to report negligence via contact numbers displayed at healthcare facilities.
The panel included representatives from the Ministry of Health, the Primary Healthcare Development Agency, and civil society organizations.
