Two registered midwives at Boto General Hospital, the home town to Ahmed Adamu Mu’azu, a former Bauchi Governor between 1999 to 2007 labour 24/7 each week to conduct 202 deliveries and offer antenatal care (ANC) services for 165 pregnant women from January to June, WikkiTimes can authoritatively report.
Mrs. Ruth Simon, a registered midwife at the hospital told this medium that the facility has just two professional midwives rendering antenatal care services to pregnant women from conception to delivery.
The General Hospital at Boto Ward in Tafawa Balewa LGA, with an approximate 5,000 population according to Mrs. Ruth also serves neighboring villages such as Zabur, Maijuju, Gora, Murno, Maigemu, Katurje, Sati-Musa Tashan Maijuju, Juwa, Rise, Zandi, Zigam, Tile and Lere.
Other neigbouring communities from Plateau state such as Husa, Gabgel, Bulli, Keres, Langai, Kadunu and Gindiri in Mangu LGA also accessed health care services at Boto general hospital.
Mrs. Simon who talks calmly and happily said “the major challenge of the maternity unit of the hospital is shortage of manpower supply. We are the only two midwives deployed to Boto General Hospital from the Bauchi State Ministry of Health.”
Mrs. Simon who lamented the condition of the hospital said; “We operate on shifting schedules. “One of us will work for one complete week before the other one takes over. “We change shift on Saturdays. “The midwife who is due to work for a week will come on Saturday to make all the necessary handing over routine,” Mrs. Simon said.
The midwife who was visibly exhausted while speaking with WikkiTimes said, “we work 24/7, and each of us who happens to be on duty will be in office throughout the week- morning, evening and night- for one week.”
She recounted that from January to June this year, the hospital registered 202 new deliveries including caesarean surgeries (CS).
“In January, we had 43 deliveries, February 29, March 36, April 39, May 31 and 24 deliveries were registered in June,” she divulged.
Although Mrs. Simon did not mince words regarding the work load on her, what appears exciting to her was that “with regard to fatalities in the shape of maternal and infant mortality, Boto General Hospital has not recorded any casualty figure within the first six months of this year”, she recalled.
“Within the first six months of this year, Boto General Hospital registered 16 stillbirths. “January saw the highest numbers of stillbirths in the hospital, as six stillbirths were documented, three stillbirths were recorded in February, March and April while one stillbirth was recorded in May,” Mrs. Simon said as tears of Joy flows on her cheeks.
Mrs. Simon while commenting on turnout of women for weekly antenatal care service said, “there is good turnout of pregnant women for ANC and labour. “There is good flow of patients. We don’t have problem.
“From January to date, we registered 165 women for our weekly ANC. “Our ANC comes up every Tuesday because it is market day in the community. “People from villages around Boto and neigbouring Plateau state used to come here for ANC”, she added.
The Midwife said the maternity ward of the hospital has six bed spaces which are “acutely below the required number to accommodate the number of women trooping into the facility for maternity services.
“Sometimes we have to reject patient or, when there is space in other wards, sent pregnant women there. “The room is too small and the numbers of beds are grossly inadequate,” she complaint.

Mrs. Simon called on the state ministry of health and Bauchi State Primary health Care Agency to look into their plight by equiping the hospital with more competent midwives to enable them render timely and qualitative services to their clients.
The hospital was built in 2004 during the reign of Ahmed Mu’azu Adamu, Bauchi Former governor and Former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party.
The hospital was commissioned in 2005 by former military dictator, General Ibrahim Babangida.