Offong Umoh Offong
Ordinarily, life is a mere sequence of events, and like an Indian company executive, Ashish Sophat would say, every event is a successor as well as predecessor of another one.
However, to others, life is beyond that since some events or issues would have been carefully planned and promoted, in order for the society to derive the deserved benefit.
No wonder, the longest-serving first lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt once remarked that the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.
Indeed, the most successful event is said to be the one that achieves one’s goals and exceeds one’s expectations.
Today, the University Uyo Teaching Hospital UUTH is in the news for no other reason than the fact that its dream has become reality in various ways.
For instance, the so-called sub-Saharan Africa, where Akwa Ibom state belongs, is believed to harbour 24 percent of the global disease burden, yet, like an Harvard-trained Physician, Mitchell Besser has noted, only three percent of the world’s health care workers exists in this area.
It therefore became a burden for the authorities of the UUTH led by Professor Etete Peters to evolve measures to focus on, not only patients in the city, but also those in the rural areas.
This has rightly informed the attention given to Community Health Officer’s Training School and the School of Health Information Management of the Teaching Hospital, which is the reason for tomorrow’s celebration.
Actually, the matriculation and convocation ceremony of both Schools hold tomorrow, Friday 29th July 2016, at the UUTH Field besides House Officers’ Quarters.
From 2007 till date, the Community Health Officers’ Training School has turned out both Ordinary Diploma and Higher National Diploma graduates who have been trained and made relevant in the primary health care concept in health care delivery.
They have been trained to provide critical medical care services to many who would otherwise have no hope.
On the other hand, The School of Health Information Management was established to train people to handle medical records, to engender statistical analysis to be used to determine efficient healthcare delivery.
The School also trains people up to the Higher National Diploma level, and both schools have been accredited by appropriate regulatory body- The National Board for Technical Education.
Both schools have not lost sight of the fact that students and communities are at the centre of their studies, therefore, they have designed lectures to ensure no student is lost in the crowd and disconnected from his or her potential.
It is not surprising that they have recorded high level of performance both in internal and external Examinations in Nigeria since its inception.
It is also worthy to note that both Schools parade competent academic staff in their areas of study, therefore, the public should take advantage of this, especially as admission is ongoing
The Teaching Hospital has gone this far, having realized that many low-income people who face chronic stress and deprivation, dwell in the communities and that, by training this set of people, would give the rural areas a lease of life.
Of course, University of Uyo Teaching Hospital is not alone in this line of thought as it is the popular saying that he who has health has hope and he who has hope has everything.
So, as the current management sustains the idea of giving the Community Health Officers’ Training school and School of Health Information Management their deserve places, in order to improve the health of our rural dwellers, it is just reasonable, for all, to give it all the necessary support.
Those matriculating should therefore know that, for a man to pursue an eminent certificate in learning, it would cost him time, watchfulness, among others, while the graduating students should take the advice by Tom Brokaw seriously when he said:
“You are educated. Your certification is in your degree. You may think of it as the ticket to the good life. Let me ask you to think of an alternative. Think of it as your ticket to change the world”.
