Edo shuts unregistered hospital

Edo State authorities have shut Jess Royal Hospital in Benin after discovering that the facility had operated for more than a decade without statutory registration.

The Edo State Healthcare Regulation and Monitoring Agency made the discovery during a monitoring exercise at an orphanage located in the same building. The hospital was not registered with either the Edo State Ministry of Health or EDOHERMA, the agency said.

During a follow-up inspection, officials found poor infection-prevention and control practices, cobwebs on ceilings and walls, rusted and deteriorated ward equipment, and badly damaged mattresses. Inspectors also found no evidence of routine fumigation or pest control, no valid and serviceable fire extinguisher, no emergency preparedness plan, and no established referral system.

The agency’s chief executive, Dr Adesuwa Urhoghide-Edigin, said membership in the Association of Nigerian Private Medical Practitioners did not authorize the hospital to operate. “ANPMP membership does not amount to statutory registration and does not authorise anyone to operate a healthcare facility in Edo State,” she said.

The hospital’s operator told officials that health challenges had prevented him from completing the registration process. EDOHERMA said the facility still had to meet all statutory requirements. It ordered the hospital to stop medical operations immediately, begin the official registration process within two weeks, and correct its infrastructure, environmental, equipment, and health-standard deficiencies. A follow-up inspection will determine whether it has complied.

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ANPMP membership does not amount to statutory registration and does not authorise anyone to operate a healthcare facility in Edo State.