The Enugu state government says it has approved the construction of a 250-bed ultramodern quaternary health facility to be known as the Enugu International Hospital.

The Enugu state commissioner for health, Emmanuel Obi, disclosed this while briefing journalists on the outcome of the state executive council meeting presided over by Gov. Peter Mbah on Sunday at the Government House, Enugu.

Mr Obi said the hospital was in line with the present administration’s promise to reverse the flow of medical tourism and position the state as the preferred destination for business, investment, tourism, and living.

The commissioner said that beside providing excellent and highly specialised medical services, the Enugu International Hospital, which would be sited in the heart of Enugu city, would equally serve as a citadel of medical research and training.

He noted that primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare were being addressed, adding that the international hospital would provide special services.

“Now, we are going to add quaternary healthcare to the scope, which simply means that an extension of tertiary care and advanced levels of medicine, which are highly specialised and not widely accessed.

“The Enugu International Hospital is going to come up at Rangers Avenue. So, it will be centrally located in Enugu, and will be easily accessible from the international airport.

“It will be that type of hospital that people will no longer have any reason to leave the shores of Nigeria to go to for healthcare,” Mr Obi stated.

Mr Obi also said that the meeting discussed measures to checkmate the Mpox disease, which he said, had become a major international concern, adding that the executive council directed a scale-up of an awareness campaign on the disease.

“The government of Enugu State had discussions on how to ensure that effective surveillance, control, and prevention of any upsurge of Mpox in the state will be put in place.

“The ministry of health is working with other health sector players, including the Akanu Ibiam International Airport Health Services, to ensure that citizens are aware, safe, and minimise their exposure to the Mpox,”he said.

(NAN)