Adedamola Dada, the outgoing medical director of the Federal Medical Centre, Ebute Metta, said the hospital had been paying a N20 million monthly electricity bill for just three hours of daily public power supply.

According to him, the extraordinary expense has led to the consumption of 80,000 litres of diesel monthly to ensure an uninterrupted power supply in the facility to maintain critical health care services.

Mr Dada disclosed this at a media parley to highlight the hospital’s achievements and challenges.

He said the hospital generated 95 per cent of its power in the past seven years to ensure uninterrupted supply to keep the facility running and meet the health needs of its patients.

The medical director, who noted that the development had impacted the hospital financially, said power was very essential for the smooth running of any functional health facility.

“We are the only federal public hospital that receives a two-to-three-hour supply of public power, but we provide 24-hour power because we are automated and can’t function without power.

“When we wanted to switch our service to automated, a lot of people asked if it would be attainable because of the epileptic power supply in the country.

”We didn’t allow that to limit us; we factored in a power delivery mechanism and generated 22 hours of power supply on our own over the last seven years.

“Though this development has eaten deep into the hospital’s finances,  it is very essential for our service,” he said.

He added that the quality of care in the hospital had attracted more patients and public recognition over the years.

Mr Dada said the Health Facilities Monitoring and Accreditation Agency (HEFEMAA), in 2022, declared the hospital the most standard and compliant hospital in Lagos State.

According to him, the most recent is the Bureau of Public Service Reform under the presidency, declaring the hospital as one of the trailblazers in using ICT in the public health sector, among others.

(NAN)