The Nigerian Navy (NN), in collaboration with a US-based firm, Medshare International train more than 30 of its biomedical engineers and technicians at the Nigerian Navy Reference Hospital, Ojo, Lagos.
According to the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Adm. Ibok Ibas represented by the Chief Staff Officer, Western Naval Command, Rear Adm. Chris Udofia, Ibas,
“The training will also build on the navy’s credible manpower development to achieve optimal capability of personnel.
The presence of highly skilled biomedical engineers and technicians are important to quality health care delivery.
Healthcare delivery all over the world is increasingly dependent on, not only skilled health care professionals, but also the use of diagnostic and therapeutic medical equipment.
These equipment, which have already been put to use in the various facilities, would require regular maintenance and occasional repairs if faulty.
This realisation prompted the need to include the training of navy’s biomedical engineers and technicians as part of the agreement with medshare international.
The training has also been extended to biomedical engineers and technicians from the Nigerian Army and Air Force.’’
Ibas, however, said that the training would not be exhaustive, following the duration of the training (one week) and advised nominated participants to make best use of the opportunity and acquire as much knowledge as they can.
According to the representative of MedShare International, Mr. Eben Armstrong,
“Instead of donating equipment all the time, we should be able to install it and train the end users on how to use it and more importantly, train the technicians and engineers on how to maintain the equipment.”
The Nigerian Navy had earlier in the year, taken delivery of some medical equipment worth $1.2 million, donated by the firm.
The equipment are microscopes, ophthalmoscopes, thermometers, nebulizers, centrifuges and stethoscopes