The University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) has commissioned a Drug Testing Centre to boost early detection and medical intervention in cases of substance abuse.
The facility was unveiled during the hospital’s 2nd Special Intervention and Stakeholders Workshop attended by representatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Nigeria Police Force, Judiciary and Edo State Ministry of Public Safety and Security.
Speaking at the event, UBTH Chief Medical Director, Prof. Idia Ize-Iyamu, said the centre would enable the hospital to move beyond identifying drug use to providing immediate medical care for affected persons.
She said the facility is equipped to test for substances including amphetamines, benzodiazepines, cannabis, ethanol, fentanyl, methadone, tramadol and barbiturates.
According to her, substance abuse has become a growing public health and safety concern, contributing to impaired judgment, road crashes, violence, family breakdown, poor academic and occupational performance and loss of lives.
Ize-Iyamu noted that the risks could become more severe when different substances are combined, stressing that early testing could help identify potential dangers before they result in medical emergencies or other tragedies.
“When a problem is identified, we have the doctors, nurses, laboratory professionals, emergency teams and specialists who can assess the patient, manage complications and provide or facilitate appropriate treatment,” she said.
The CMD said the centre was therefore designed as a pathway from detection to intervention, rather than making drug testing an end in itself.
Representing Governor Monday Okpebholo, Commissioner for Public Safety and Security, Festus Ebea, said the facility would provide reliable testing, counselling and treatment for drivers, prospective employees and members of the public.
Ebea linked illicit drug use to crime and dangerous behaviour, including reckless driving, armed robbery and violence, and urged people struggling with substance use to seek rehabilitation.
He also called for stronger collaboration among UBTH, the police and NDLEA in tackling the drug problem.
Earlier, Director of the Centre for Forensic and DNA Studies, University of Benin, Prof. Eddy Ehikhamenor, commended the Federal Government’s push for drug testing among students, saying the initiative could help curb substance abuse.
He urged Nigerians to make use of the new facility, assuring them that those undergoing screening would not be stigmatised.
