The Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), Bauchi, has witnessed a surge in the number of kidney patients accessing dialysis services following the introduction of the Federal Government’s (FG) dialysis subsidy scheme.
Hamamatu Haruna, manager of the hospital’s renal centre, disclosed on Monday that the facility had recorded 1,162 patients for dialysis between January and September 2025.
She attributed the increase in patient turnout to the government’s intervention, which slashed the cost of each dialysis session from about N50,000 to N12,000.
The subsidy scheme, implemented in 12 federal tertiary health institutions nationwide, is part of President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s drive to expand access to universal health coverage and reduce the financial strain on Nigerians battling kidney-related diseases.
Read Also: Abuja govt hospital records success in first living-donor kidney transplant
Ms Haruna said the Bauchi centre had recently seen an influx of patients from neighbouring states, including Plateau, Gombe, and Taraba, due to the affordability of services.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) noted that the centre is equipped with state-of-the-art gadgets to cater for patients with HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and C, as well as other renal conditions.
“Presently, we have received another batch of consumables from the Federal Ministry of Health. This is the second within this year, and whenever we place a request, the items are made available. The consumables supplied include catheters for adults; this alone is expensive for patients to buy outside,” she said.
The manager of the hospital added that the centre operates round the clock with a standby generator to ensure uninterrupted services, despite challenges such as inadequate manpower.
“We run a morning/evening shift, and we are few, so, during emergencies, you are expected to be on duty even if you are not on the shift,” Ms Haruna explained.
