The persistent power crisis at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, has forced families of patients on admission to bring their own generators and solar inverters to the hospital to ensure continued medical care.
The tertiary medical facility has been grappling with incessant power failures due to an enormous electricity debt owed to the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), which led to a power disconnection by the electricity provider since October 26, 2024.
The development has severely disrupted critical medical services, putting the lives of patients at risk.
In response to the dire situation, medical students from the University of Ibadan (UI) recently staged a protest, demanding urgent government intervention to restore power supply to the renowned health facility.
The students decried the deteriorating conditions at UCH, emphasizing that the lack of electricity is hampering medical procedures and worsening patient outcomes.
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As the crisis deepens, desperate families have taken matters into their own hands by providing alternative power sources, such as petrol and diesel generators, as well as solar inverters, to power life-saving medical equipment.
Some have also had to rely on rechargeable lamps and battery-powered fans to maintain a bearable environment within hospital wards.
Responding to the situation, the Oyo State Government acknowledged the challenges facing UCH and announced its plan to connect the hospital to its recently commissioned Independent Power Plant (IPP).
“The Oyo State Government is aware of the power supply challenges at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan.
Although the facility is managed by the federal government, the OYSG plans to connect UCH to the State’s Independent Power Plant (IPP) as a medium-term solution,” the state government stated in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
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While this intervention offers a ray of hope, medical personnel and patients at UCH continue to struggle with the realities of an ongoing blackout.
The lack of stable electricity has significantly hindered surgical operations, laboratory services, and other essential healthcare functions, compounding the suffering of patients and stretching medical professionals to their limits.
Stakeholders in the health sector have reiterated calls for the federal government to designate medical institutions as critical infrastructure that should enjoy a subsidized electricity tariff to prevent future occurrences.
They argue that reliable electricity is fundamental to saving lives and ensuring the efficient delivery of healthcare services.
For now, however, patients and their families at UCH must rely on their ingenuity and personal resources to sustain life-saving treatments until a lasting solution is found.