…May be Ordered to Obey Environmental Health Reg. Council Demands      

The Chief Medical Director(CMD) of University of Uyo Teaching Hospital(UUTH) and the health institution(UUTH) have been dragged to the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Uyo Judicial division, as per Suit No: FHC/UY/C/70/2012.

The Environmental Health Officers Registration Council of Nigeria is dragging the said CMD and UUTH to Court for refusal, after many entreaties, to forward to the said Council, names and qualification of those employed in the Hospital as Environmental Health Officers.

A letter dated March 28, 2012, signed by the South-South Zonal Coordinator of the Environmental Health Officers Registration Council of Nigeria had referred the CMD to Act No. 11 of 2002 Section 16 which forbids any person not registered in accordance to the said Act to hold “any appointment in the public or private establishment body or institution if holding of such appointment involves the performance by him in Nigeria of any act pertaining to the profession for gain”.

The said letter also made it clear that it was mandatory for the UUTH to, “only engage the services of Environmental Health Officers that are registered and Licensed by the Council”.

Feeling that the Chief Medical Director of UUTH was in flout of the Law, Mr Akanimo Akpan wrote on 29 March 2012 informing the CMD that his Council’s attention was drawn to the fact that the teaching hospital was engaging unqualified persons as Environmental Health Officers, describing such action as “illegal and in contravention of the law” which established the said Council, saying that such was “unacceptable to the Council”.

In the said letter ref; EHORECON/SS/8/VOL.1/01, the South-South Zonal Coordinator had said that since all environmental duties in the Teaching Hospital were Environmental Health related and that no scheme was made in the Federal Civil Service for Environmental Officer, that anybody carrying out  Environmental Health duties in the Hospital should be a Registered and Licensed Environmental Health Officer.  The letter handed down an ultimatum of thirty days for the Chief Medical Director via an “advice” for him to “reassign” any of his staff “assigned to carry out Environmental Health duties in the Teaching Hospital to other responsibilities”.

The Waves investigation showed that when the Medical Director appeared to be slow in heeding the Council’s pieces of advice, a third letter dated April 30, 2012 written by the said Council ref; EHORECON/SS/8/VOL.1/22 requested that for refusal to comply with earlier entreaties, the CMD should forward a list of names, academic qualification, grade level, date of employment and job title of Officers serving under the Environmental Health Unit of the hospital to it, invoking Freedom of Information Act 2011 Sections 1, 2(3), (3.d.vi) to support its position.

In the letter, the said Council for the Registration of Environmental Health Officers drew the CMD’s attention to a Federal Ministry of Health circular No. MII7059/VOL.1/14 of April 30, 2007 in which all Chief Medical Directors were to set up infection control and waste management committee and one of the members should be a “registered Environmental Health Officer in charge of waste management in the Hospital”.

The said Council also called the attention of the CMD to a decision taken at the end of the 50^th National Council on Health held in January 2007 as stated in the circular that by end of 2007 every healthcare and research facility “shall create an Environmental Health Department/Unit manned by qualified professionals charged with the responsibility of Environmental Health services including waste management in such facility”.

This Paper learnt that the Council, not being replied, sought the service of a Solicitor who wrote in a letter dated May 21, 2012, calling the attention of the CMD and the UUTH to the flouting of the law of the land.  Emem Adam Esq., on his Client’s behalf had sought to have a list of names and qualifications of those employed as Environmental Health Officers in UUTH, within seven days of the receipt of his letter.  A court action to seek redress for his Client, the Environmental Health Registration Council, was threatened, but the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital allegedly sounded cold up until June 13, 2012(23 days after).

The Acting Director of Administration, S.O. Williams, writing for the Chief Medical Director and in a letter ref; UUTH/CST/S/107/VOL.1/7 in  reply to the Solicitor’s letter had said the Board of Management of the Hospital was fully aware of the requirement of the Environmental Health Registration Council and that in compliance to  Act 2004 of that Council that the Hospital was restructuring the functioning of the Environmental Office in the Hospital to reflect “the present demands”.

Mr Williams argued for the CMD that his hands were tight to release the list of names and qualifications of those employed in their employ in the Environmental Health Unit because of what he called “bureaucratic constraints”, “lack of authority to disclose such a secret and confidential document without due authorization by the relevant official body”.

The Management of the Hospital pleaded for more time and understanding towards what it called, “the resolution of the matter”, expressing “deep regrets over the delays in the conclusion of the required restructuring” which the hospital Acting Director of Administration said was occasioned by “inability to readily obtain approvals from the relevant authorities”.  The relevant authorities were not mentioned in the letter as observed by this Paper.

Meanwhile, a Motion on Notice brought pursuant to Order 26, Rule 2, Federal High Court Rules 2009 and Section 21 Freedom of Information Act 2011 filed by the Environmental Health Officers Registration Council of Nigeria’s Solicitor, Emem Adams Esq against University of Uyo Teaching Hospital and the Chief Medical Director of the said hospital had sought an Order directing the Respondents to compile, compute and collate in its employ staffers employed in its Environmental Health Unit as Environmental Health Officer(s) reflecting their qualifications and release same to the Applicant forthwith. 

The case first came up on Wednesday October 17, 2012 at Federal High Court, Uyo.