Lagos acquires 20 mobile intensive care facilities, ambulances  

Lagos State government has acquired 20 new Mobile Intensive Care Units (MICU) and additional 26 transport ambulances to further boost healthcare delivery in the state.

The new facilities will be of great help in times of emergency, such as fire disasters and other forms of accidents where human lives are in great danger. Lagos is home to frequent emergency cases. So far this year, tanker fires, road accidents, air crash have led to loss of lives leaving families in ruins.

At the handing over of the MICU and the ambulances on Monday, the state governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, said the additional facilities were acquired with the aim to extend emergency healthcare services to more areas of the state.

“In my inaugural address, I pledged my total commitment to run a government that will leave no one behind; a government that will implement programmes that make life simpler, easier and happier for our people. Today, we are launching the free ambulance service as a demonstration to that pledge,” the governor said.

He said the ambulances would be stationed at the 26 general hospitals within the state for easy access, and that his administration had restructured the state emergency ambulance services and increased the fleet of new mobile intensive care units by 20, bringing the total number to 33 units.

He further said that the feat would widen the coverage of their services beyond the metropolis to the hinterlands.

Modele Osunkiyesi, the permanent secretary in the state ministry of health, said the acquisition of the MICU was fallout of stakeholders meeting with the governor.

She said 41 days ago, a public health stakeholders’ meeting was held at the behest of the governor at which deliberations focused on immediate challenges being faced by each stakeholders, adding that the outcome was the acquisition of the ambulances.