LAGOS: Govt To Unveil Traditional Medicine Bureaus Near Hospitals

By Mohammed Oluwatimileyin Taoheed

Professor Olubukola Oshintelu, the Chairman of the State Traditional Medicine Board, has revealed that plans are in progress to set up traditional medicine offices beside all the General Hospitals in Lagos State.

When questioned by TrackNews about the rationale, she said that this will allow the residents choose which treatment option they preferred and go on with it without any hindrance.

Oshintelu made this known at sensitisation programme for traditional medicine practitioners in Badagry, Lagos State yesterday. The scholar claimed that patients will now decide whether they want traditional or orthodox treatment however no competition will exist.

She assured: “The state is after the wellness of its citizens, to promote the good health of our people. To those doing the practice secretly, the task force and the monitoring team will come after them, expose and reprimand them.

“This is just to make sure Lagos people are saved and reduce quackery in the sector and also reduce unnecessary incidents.”

But while commenting that the traditional medicine practitioners must register with the board before they can practice, the Chairperson also advised them to have data for better relevance.

“Before becoming a practitioner, you will first undergo six months mandatory training, after which a certificate will be given to you. The training does not end there because this is a matter of life and death; so, they will go another six weeks training after which some of them will become community birth attendants.

“With these training programmes, there is no reason for them to have accidents when it comes to pregnancy management and post-natal care,” she added.

She added: “Each clinic, each practitioner, must have a record of everyone coming in. They should state what they do, and they must get their demographic data and how they are getting better. If your patients are not getting better, you have to refer them to the people who can cater for them.”