Gov’s wife welcomes first 2015 baby in LIMH

Baby of the Year 2015, Baby Ogechukwu, weighing 2.5kg, was born at 12.01am at the Isolo General Hospital, Isolo, Lagos... on Thursday

The wife of Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola, has welcomed the first baby born in the Lagos Island Maternity Hospital, in 2015.

Fashola presented to the child a wooden cot, a mattress and pillows donated by Vitafoam at the LIMH on Thursday.

The baby, a female, was born to Mrs. Sherifat Ogunnoiki at 12.01 am with a birth weight of 2.3 kilogrammes.

She, however, narrowly missed being named the first baby of the year in the state, as another baby was born at 12.01 to Mrs. Ogechukwu Onyejiekwe at the Isolo General Hospital.

While baby Ogunnoiki was born through caesarian section, baby Onyejiekwe was delivered through virginal delivery, which made baby Onyejiekwe an automatic winner.

While thanking Vitafoam and other corporate organisations, who had contributed to the annual event and the renovation of the lounge as well as the A4 private ward in the hospital, Fashola called on more individuals and organisations to complement the effort of the state government in the health sector.

She said, “I commend all the individuals and organisations that have partnered with the hospital and the state government to bring about this impressive transformation.”

The Chief Medical Director of the LIMH, Dr. Donald Imosemi, urged the government to build an Intensive Care Unit for critically ill patients and overhaul the sewage system in the hospital.

“In 2014, we recorded only two booked maternal deaths. A good number of our 48 unbooked deaths would have possibly survived if we had an ICU. This is our major agenda for 2015,” he said.

According to Imosemi, a total of 74,733 patients visited the LIMH in 2014, a decrease from the 81,605 patients recorded in 2013.

Imosemi, however, attributed the reduction to the outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease and the protracted industrial strike in the health sector.

He added that a total deliveries of 2,890 were recorded out of which 1,349 were carried out by caesarian section.

The Group Managing Director, Vitafoam, Joel Ajiga, said, “This is our first social assignment this year at Vitafoam. We want to celebrate motherhood and we have been doing this for the past 20 years in various ways across the country. We are bringing together first babies of the year in Lagos State since 2008 as our ambassadors.”

Presentations were also made to the second babies of the year at the hospital, a set of twins born to Mrs. Omoshalewa Agbetoba at 2.39am and 2.41am respectively.

The third babies of the year at the hospital, also a set of twins, were born to Mrs. Mutiat Oyedeji at 7.47am and 7.48am respectively.