Residents of Oyediran village in Osun State have, for over eight long years, been enduring life without access to healthcare, as the once-functioning Oyediran Primary Health Centre remains deserted, forcing them to travel long distances for medical services and putting their lives at risk, reports Noah Aderoju, who was on a sight visit to the PHC.

In the words of Mrs. Funmilayo Segun, a resident of Oyediran village, “When they first brought this maternity PHC then, during the time of the former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola, we were all happy that we now have a hospital to go to. We didn’t need to travel long distances to get healthcare and child delivery.”

However, the joy quickly turned to disappointment as the health officials vanished, leaving the PHC abandoned for many years.

Oyediran PHC reflects the plight of many other PHCs in Osun state suffering from lack of, or defective structures and equipment for quality primary healthcare delivery.

Residents like Mrs Segun find themselves in dire straits, traveling several kilometres to hospitals in Iwo town when in need of medical care. Pregnant women, in particular, face hardships as they embark on arduous hours-long trips on bad roads, risking complications during motorcycle journeys to access healthcare.

Oyediran village, a remote community close to the Oyo-Osun border, is predominantly inhabited by farmers. With over a hundred residents and difficult access due to poorly maintained roads, reaching the nearest health facility takes more than an hour by bike, often becoming impassable during the rainy season when a stream overflows, trapping residents inside.

While investigating, it was confirmed that a trip to and out of the village can only be conveniently made on a motorcycle, and even this is challenging during the rainy season. The lack of a functional PHC aggravates the situation, with children seen playing in flooded areas, oblivious to the health risks it poses to their lives.

Google map directions showing the distance between the village to nearby public health facilities revealed that it takes at least an hour and some minutes to get to either

Agberire PHC or State Hospital, Iwo.

And like in other areas in the state motorcycles are the most used means of transportation to PHCs exposing pregnant women and aged persons to more risk.

While investigating this story, this reporter visited the village a couple of times and confirmed that a trip to the village can only be conveniently made on a motorcycle and that may also not be possible during the rainy season because of the stream earlier mentioned.
The first trip was on the 27th of October when the rainy season was coming to an end, however, the only road that leads to the village was still flooded by the overflowing current of the stream making the only way forward to be going through the puddle of water.
Children were seen swimming and playing in this puddle of water oblivious to the dangers it poses to their health and no evident care about the lack of a PHC close enough to attend to any emergency need for medical assistance.

Abandoned PHC is just one of our problems – Community Leader.
One of the community leaders of Oyediran Village, Mr Taofeek Amao noted that although the abandoned PHC causes a lot of hardship to the residents it is just one of the many other problems they face. He said the prime of the problems is the bad road network, others are the absence of electricity and adequate potable water.

He said many of the residents have even relocated to other communities due to these infrastructural problems thus further decreasing the chance of the community being noticed by the government.

Corroborating the account of Mrs Segun, he said when the PHC was functional, there was solar, water and quarters for the two health officers manning the place. And the people were benefiting from the facility. The health officers would even go to other villages close by to attend to people there as a form of community outreach.
“We the people in turn took care of the facility, we would usually clear the bushes around the PHC and even the school. People from our community and those outsidew ould even pick a date that we would do the clearing. The corn plantation in the compound was done recently to keep the place in good condition and useful since no health officer would come again” He said.

The abandonment of the PHC created a void not only for healthcare but other amenities in the community. Now there is only one source of potable water which is a manual pump borehole that can’t satisfy the needs of the people and no source of electricity and no access to healthcare.

Another challenge bedevilling the community is the absence of a community school. There is only one primary school sighted in the area and it appears to also be abandoned. Many of the children school in neighbouring towns, going on Monday and coming back by the weekend as most of them either have alternative residents or relatives to stay with over there.
PHC politically sited, and working there poses risk to workers – SPHCDA
When asked about the reasons for discontinuing the Oyediran PHC, the Secretary of Iwo Local Government’s Primary Healthcare Board, Dr Awosise said the siting of that PHC was ill-advised and politically motivated. Dr Awosise said although he assumed his current position in 2017 (the PHC had been discontinued by then) he learnt from his predecessor that the board advised against siting a PHC in that remote area.

He said despite that, on the assumption of his post in 2017 he made an effort to push for the continuance of service at the centre but after his assessment of the place when he visited the community, he was convinced that putting any staff in that PHC would mean risking their lives. He noted that there had been a record of attack on the workers once in the area and Osun state is currently short of health workers. Many PHCs, even in more viable locations do not have more than two or three staff, some even have to manage just one person. So, until there is a positive change in the general situation of things there may be no hope of continuing that PHC.
As things stand, the abandoned Oyediran PHC not only leaves the community without essential healthcare but also worsens other infrastructure challenges, creating a ripple effect that affects the overall well-being of the residents, as addressing these issues requires urgent attention and intervention to restore healthcare services and improve living conditions in Oyediran village.

This story was produced for the Frontline Investigative Program and supported by the Africa Data Hub and Orodata Science.