The Rotary Club of Maryland has honoured the Medical Director of the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Enugu, Prof. Monday Igwe with its Humanitarian Service Award.
Igwe who received the award during the installation ceremony of the 18th President of the club, Innocent Asonye at Predia Hotel, Enugu, dedicated the award to staff of the hospital who sacrificed all to keep the rating of the hospital high.
While thanking the club for the award, Igwe called on wealthy individuals, groups and establishments to assist mentally-sick patients, especially those abandoned by their relatives and friends at the hospital.
He noted that the intake, treatment and outright daily care of mentally-sick patients were becoming a burden to the hospital and its benevolent staff, who cannot hold back but help.
The medical director noted that the hospital had a pile up of unpaid bills, adding “we cannot locate their relatives or friends, who brought the patient to the hospital in the first place.”
“We cannot send them away or throw them out onto the streets; we ensure they are fed, clothed, cleaned up, accommodated and provided with the needed medical services.
“In the spirit of Rotary, we are calling on our people, especially people that have extra, to come to the aid of our patients, because there are a lot of them that have been abandoned by their relatives, caregivers and friends.
“As things are now, we cannot easily take care of them any longer without the support of the wealthy groups and establishments around us,” he said.
Igwe also urged Nigerians to remember patients in the hospital as they visit other special-needs centres during festivities and merriments, whereas “our own patients are the people who need such donations more than other people because our patients most times have no one to take care and show love to them.
“Our patients are entirely dependent on other people, unlike other patients that can take care of themselves,” he said.
“It is because of the dedication of staff that we have achieved what you can visibly see and feel today about the hospital. We will continue to put in our best and see how we will continue to help our people and humanity in general,” he said.
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