FCTA trains health workers in emergency care

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The Federal Capital Territory Administration has commenced a four-day Basic Life Support training for health workers from seven hospitals in the territory as part of efforts to strengthen emergency response and reduce preventable deaths.

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This was contained in a statement signed by the Media Aide to the Health Services and Environment Secretariat, Bola Ajao, which was made available to PUNCH Online on Saturday.

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The training, which began at the Conference Hall of Asokoro District Hospital, is being conducted under the National Basic Life Support Training Programme approved by the National Council on Health for implementation across the country.

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Health workers from Asokoro, Maitama, Wuse, Gwarinpa, Kuje, Kubwa and Nyanya hospitals are participating in the programme, which is certified by the American Heart Association.

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Declaring the training open, the Mandate Secretary of the Health Services and Environment Secretariat, Dr Dolapo Fasawe, said the exercise was designed to equip health workers with the skills required to respond promptly to medical emergencies and provide basic life-saving interventions before further medical care is available.

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Fasawe said the initiative was part of the FCTA’s efforts to improve emergency services in government hospitals and minimise avoidable loss of lives.

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She added that the knowledge acquired by the participants would be shared with their colleagues and members of the public as part of the National Community CPR Initiative.

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According to her, the FCTA was committed to ensuring that its health workers remained abreast of global best practices in emergency care.

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She disclosed that the administration was also working towards establishing Code Blue Teams across hospitals in the FCT to ensure that patients requiring urgent attention received prompt intervention.

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“Our goal is to consistently record success stories from ‘no pulse to resuscitation’. When people know that they can receive timely and proper emergency care in our hospitals, it will also build their confidence and trust in government hospitals to respond swiftly and manage their loved ones,” Fasawe said.

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She said the BLS training would subsequently be extended to other hospitals in the FCT, while the necessary basic equipment and other requirements would be provided to support emergency response and patient care.

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The participants are expected to undergo an assessment at the end of the training, with certificates to be awarded to those who meet the required standard.

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The Medical Director of Asokoro District Hospital, Dr Oluseyi Ashaolu, described the training as timely and necessary, saying it would enable health workers to keep pace with developments in basic emergency care globally.

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He said the skills acquired during the programme could help prevent avoidable deaths, particularly in situations where immediate and appropriate intervention could determine whether a patient survived.

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The training coordinator, Dr Rosemary Nwokorie, a consultant anaesthetist, said the programme was being conducted in batches.

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She said the first batch was scheduled for August 21 and 22, 2026, while the second batch would take place on September 4 and 5.

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Nwokorie added that the programme included a “Stop the Bleeding” course aimed at equipping health workers with techniques for controlling severe bleeding in trauma patients before definitive medical treatment could be provided.

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The team of instructors is led by Dr Onyedika Godfrey Okoye, a trauma surgeon at the Trauma Centre, National Hospital, Abuja.

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The FCTA said the training was part of its broader efforts to strengthen emergency care and ensure that health workers in its hospitals were adequately prepared to respond when patients required immediate medical attention.

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