JUTH: There is no form of discrimination in treating patients– CMD

The acting Chief Medical Director of the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Dr Pokop Bupwatda, has said that there is no form of discrimination meted out to patients of any tribe, religion or state of origin in the hospital.

Bupwatda made this disclosure on Saturday in Jos, when he briefed the press on the purported video making the rounds and the headline of a national daily, suggesting that members of certain religion and tribe are discriminated against in the hospital.

The CMD stated that the hospital is a federal health institution, which is a commonwealth to all Nigerians.

He further disclosed that as professional physicians who hold sacred the hippocratic oath, no human being in JUTH is denied access to health care or discriminated against.

Bupwatda said that the content of the video doesn’t in any way represent the policy of the federal government or the federal ministry of health under which JUTH is a parastatal.

He debunked the claims made by a staff in the video insinuating that once patients fill a wrong data as regards their state of origin or Local Government Area and it is imputed in the data system, the system shuts down.

He said the staff involved isn’t a health record staff and doesn’t have the mandate to divulge such information which is misleading.

He revealed that the staff has been reprimanded.

According to him, the tertiary health institution is saddled with three core responsibilities of delivering clinical services, training and education and research.

He pointed out for the purpose of research, data is required and that is why data are collected for research and for health surveillance purposes and not for discriminatory purposes.

Bupwatda assured the public that the hospital in no way discriminates and he called on any patient who feels discriminated against to report to the management of JUTH who would investigate and carry out appropriate measures against such a nefarious act.