An estimated 1 in 4 Nigeria couple is fertility challenged. Despite this staggering statistic, advancements in assisted reproductive technologies provide a lot of reasons to be hopeful if you’re infertile and help you have a baby.
Unfortunately, these treatments are not cheap. In view of this and in recognition of the importance of childbearing in our society, some government-owned hospitals have embraced the challenge of reducing the scourge of infertility by providing IVF and its related services to the public at a more affordable cost than what obtains in the private facilities.
Making IVF affordable, accessible and available interestingly is not an easy feat to achieve hence some level of praise ought to be given to the six-government owned hospitals that have hitherto toed the line of setting up their own clinics to provide the technology at a reduced cost. Below are the government hospitals that have embraced ART and established their own IVF clinics with some appreciable level of success.
UNIVERSITY OF BENIN TEACHING HOSPITAL (UBTH)
University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) started providing assisted reproductive technology services in June 2007 with a pregnancy success rate of 28%. Although the department widely known as the Human Reproduction Research Programme (HRRP)/IVF unit began as infertility dedicated programme on the 1st June 1989, it took until 2004 for her cutting-edge IVF equipment to be installed.
The hospitals have helped in the conception of and the birthing of several babies. Its first IVF technique was performed on the 22nd June 2007 and a baby was delivered on Monday 22nd May 2008 at 12.15pm as the first IVF baby; 18 years after the original conception of the HRRP.
GARKI HOSPITAL ABUJA
The Garki Hospital Abuja is owned by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA). In March 2007, a concession agreement for the management and operation of the new Garki Hospital Abuja was signed between FCTA and Nisa Premier Hospital, after having been closed in 2001 for a full renovation. The concession was in line with the Federal Government’s Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Policy. The hospital is a model 100plus bedded hospital in the FCT breaking barriers and setting the pace in both general and specialized services.
On June 23, 2015, the IVF clinic recorded the first birth of twin .
NATIONAL HOSPITAL ABUJA
The National Hospital, Abuja is a multi-disciplinary tertiary hospital located in the Central Area of FCT. It is originally meant to be National Hospital for Women and Children and was commissioned on 22 May 1999 by the former Head of State, His Excellency, General Abdulsalami Abubakar. The hospital opened its door to patients on 11th October 1999.
The IVF unit of the hospital was established in 2006 and according to Dr. Jaf Momoh, the Chief Medical Director of National Hospital, the hospital has recorded the birth of 500 babies by In-Vitro Fertilization between 2006 and 2016
UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN TEACHING HOSPITAL
The UITH IVF centre was first commissioned for public use in January 2012 with moderate office accommodation for the unit to kick-start the IVF programme. The rapid success of the IVF team within a considerable shot time of operation encouraged the hospital management to construct a state of the art ultra modern site in June 2015 which was officially commissioned on 14th September 2015.
Within its short period of operation, the centre has assisted in bringing into the world, 19 babies, (9 boys and 10 girls) including a set of triplet.
Speaking on why the clinic was established, the Chief Medical Director, (CMD) Professor Abdulwaheed Olatinwo stated that “we set up this unit due to our quests to put smiles on the faces of those touted as childless. As Africans once there is a problem of infertility, it will surely lead to divorce. But the UITH has now been telling those involved that just as a woman could be infertile so could a man also be non-virile.”
THE LAGOS UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITAL
Lagos State University Teaching Hospital popularly known as LASUTH is a state-owned teaching hospital in Lagos strategically located in Ikeja- the state capital. The hospital was established in 1955 from a small cottage health center by the Old western region. It was converted to a teaching hospital in July 2001. The hospital established her institute of Fertility Medicine (IFM), by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a private Fertility facility- The Bridge Clinic.
The Teaching hospital has recorded a milestone of 74 live births since its inception in 2011.
LAGOS UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITAL
The Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) established in 1962 is a Federal Government owned tertiary health care provider located in Idi-Araba, Surulere. It is one of the twin organizations (alongside The College of Medicine of the University of Lagos) established by the Federal Government of Nigeria for the education and training of medical personnel (undergraduate and post-graduate) as well as for providing specialized medical care for patients.
LUTH re-opened her Assisted Reproductive Clinic some 30 years after it delivered the first test-tube baby in West and East Africa. The institution renowned for pioneering IVF is said to have treated 20 patients between 1984 and 1994. “But we could not sustain it because of the lack of institutional and government support.
By and large, aside from the batching of patients, delays in treatment and inefficiencies characteristic of government-owned institutions, the aforementioned hospitals have recorded successes in their own capacity and must be credited for helping to complete families in their own little way.
Of course, the perception of public hospitals is that they are run-down by their management, poorly maintained and over-crowded. It must, however, be acknowledged that public hospitals often contain centers of excellence within them and quite a number of excellent professionals
So we dare say, for anyone who is budget constrained, any of the aforementioned government owned fertility clinics will be an appropriate place to seek fertility help.
However, if you could afford it, private fertility clinics still give you the highest chance of successful IVF treatment. Our research team has done a detailed investigation of some top centers in Nigeria see the ranking of
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