By Hannah Ijege
Health workers at the Community Health Center in Itega Okpame, Yala Local Government Area of Cross River State, are battling harsh working conditions and personally funding basic medical needs as the facility struggles with poor infrastructure and lack of essential equipment.
The rural health center, which serves residents of the community and surrounding areas, has reportedly been operating without electricity, water supply, hospital beds, mattresses, baby weighing scales and standard delivery equipment, forcing health personnel to improvise while attending to patients.
Speaking with CrossRiverWatch reporter in Itega Okpame, a health practitioner at the center, Angela Mogana, described the situation as difficult and risky, especially during emergency cases and childbirth.
“As you can see, work has been very difficult because of no equipment not even the least delivery couch. We have one that the community bought when they built the center till now. Working here is not only difficult, it is also risky attending to patients so we refer serious cases to the general hospital in Ochuchi.”
She disclosed that health workers often provide drugs and delivery materials from personal funds while waiting for pregnant women coming for childbirth.
According to her, most night-time deliveries are conducted with torchlights due to the absence of electricity, a situation residents fear could endanger lives during critical medical emergencies.
When contacted, the Coordinator of Primary Healthcare in Okpoma, Angela Egbayei, said providing equipment and infrastructure for the center was beyond her office’s responsibility, noting that many health facilities across Yala Local Government Area face similar challenges.
In her response, the Director General of the Cross River State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Vivian Mesembe, attributed the poor state of the facilities to longstanding infrastructural problems inherited from previous administrations.
“It is not only in Yala, all the Local Government Areas in Cross River State are going through the same issue. We inherited the unequipped centers from the past government, so it has been like that right from the onset till now,” she said.
Residents of the community say the deteriorating condition of the facility has continued to affect access to healthcare, particularly for pregnant women, nursing mothers and children.
A resident, Patience Obenyi, appealed to the state government to urgently intervene and equip the center to reduce avoidable suffering and medical complications in the community.
The situation at the Itega Okpame health center highlights the broader challenges facing rural healthcare delivery in Cross River State, where inadequate funding, poor infrastructure and shortage of medical equipment continue to limit access to quality healthcare services.
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