For two months now antenatal patients, mostly pregnant women had been languishing in psychological trauma following an alleged N15,000.00 payment before any treatment.
Our senior correspondent who took a trip to the said health centre observed that patients were denied access to the much-orchestrated free-medical treatment of ages 6 to 70 and above.
Few pregnant women who gave audience to our senior correspondent pointed out that the health centre management demanded the payment of N15, 000.00 for registration and treatment.
The pregnant women who pleaded to avoid their names in print, asserted, “We have been coming here as pregnant women to take our normal medical check up and treatment, but only to hear from the nurses and management of the health centre that we should pay the sum of N15, 000.00 to access our registration and treatment or we go and get our local government I.D letters, voters registration and National I.D cards and or driver’s license, PHCN bills, for easy and proper identification of our origins. Some of us that got all these things (documents) too were still denied registration and treatment,” adding that because they (the patients) were not compromising, the nurses were alleging that the free medical programme might soon come to an end.
We gathered that one pregnant woman openly challenged the nurses and allegedly accused them of defrauding the out- patients, even after the nurses have identified that all her requirements (document) were correct, accurate, intact and up to date, but still denied her registration and treatment.
When contacted, the matron of the health centre denied the allegations of the out patients/cum pregnant women, saying that it was an untrue story, rumours and allegations.
“We have not asked any out-patient or pregnant women to pay any money. Such stories are rumours, they are untrue and mere allegations,” she said.
The matron who refused to disclose her identity further explained that her health centre was also on the list of the Rivers State ministry of health’s free-medical scheme.
However, as at the time of going to press, patients were still complaining.
By Bennett James
