BENIN CITY – The management of the Edo State Specialist Hospital (ESH) has assured patients affected by the suspension of orthodontic treatment at the facility about a year ago that efforts are underway to resume the service.
The assurance comes as some of the affected patients continue to grapple with dental misalignment, periodic bleeding and halitosis (mouth odour), among other complications they associate with the prolonged unavailability of follow-up orthodontic care.
The Chief Medical Director (CMD), of the hospital, Dr. (Mrs.) Anthonia Inibokun Njoku, gave the assurance while addressing journalists at the facility in Benin City, Edo State capital, recently.
Investigation revealed that the patients’ ordeal began in July 2025 when they were informed that the only orthodontist at the facility had travelled abroad. Patients who subsequently reported for scheduled follow-up appointments were asked to return home and “wait for a call” for a rescheduled appointment.
However, some of the patients lamented that they were yet to receive any such calls.
Further checks revealed that some affected patients had been forced to seek treatment elsewhere, with some having to restart their treatment from the beginning.
Our correspondent’s previous checks at the Dental Care Unit of the hospital showed that a list of affected patients had been compiled, pending the resumption of duty by orthodontists the hospital was seeking to recruit.
However, when our correspondent made another check a few months later, an insider, who pleaded anonymity, disclosed that the proposed recruitment of orthodontists had stalled after the hospital’s management and the specialists failed to reach an agreement over their conditions of engagement.
One of the affected patients said, “I came for a check-up two months ago, only to be told my orthodontist had left the country.
“They said I would be reassigned and called. Till now, no call. My braces are loose, and two teeth are misaligned.
“I cannot afford a private dentist like my niece did after we came here together. My parents already paid for the services I am not getting now.”
A man, who identified himself simply as Mr. David, said his son began orthodontic treatment at the hospital last year.
“My son fixed his first braces last year. During check-ups, we were made to pay N5,000 to replace any broken brace. A few months later, we were told the hospital did not supply braces and that the ones available were sourced from a private clinic, so we were made to pay N10,000 each.
“That was the red flag that the treatment was not going to be a smooth ride, but I ignored it,” he lamented.
Another patient said he paid N600,000 as a deposit for a treatment programme expected to last at least 18 months, only to be informed two weeks later that the doctor had travelled out of the country.
“I expected the hospital to understand the situation or enter into an MoU with University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), or other facilities and refer us there so that our treatment could be completed.
“I am indeed pained that my state government-owned healthcare facility could treat me so shabbily,” the patient lamented.
The complaints were made by some of the affected patients when our correspondent visited the Dental Care Unit of the hospital last September.
Meanwhile, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Cyril Oshiomhole, had, at the wake of the crisis, acknowledged the challenges posed by the “Japa” syndrome in the health sector but said recruitment had been carried out to address the shortage of medical personnel.
“Possibly, they must have gotten an orthodontist. We still need doctors,”Dr. Oshiomhole said.
He also disclosed that the state government was working on a new incentive model aimed at retaining medical personnel.
“What the state government wants to do is to come up with a model, a form of revenue-sharing formula between the doctors and the hospital, so that there will not be a need for Japa,” he assured.
The CMD, Dr. Inibokun, explained that considerable efforts had been made to recruit orthodontists for the hospital, assuring the affected patients that relief would soon come their way.
“I am not sleeping over it, that is why I can be bold to talk. What I am planning, the next exam season, I will carry myself to Ibadan to scout for them, not only in that field. So, I am going to discuss with the consultant orthodontist.
“It is a special area in medicine. Mind you, this is a government hospital, we will not employ quacks. The ones we have seen wanted to rip us off. I told them, ‘You cannot rip us off.’ This is what is supposed to be a win-win situation.
“Maybe after this ceremony this week, I will want to meet with the patients on the list and talk with them. We will address that,” she explained.
Meanwhile, the affected patients have appealed to Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, to intervene in their plight, saying they were encouraged by reports that the state government recently recruited over 1,000 workers to boost manpower in the health sector.
They appealed to him to ensure that specialised medical personnel, particularly orthodontists, are recruited to address their plight.
“We have paid for our treatment and started the process in good faith. We only want the government to help us complete what we started,” one of the patients said.
They appealed to the government to consider collaborating with government-owned tertiary hospitals, including the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), to provide temporary or referral arrangements until orthodontic services are fully restored.