Lagos begins free knee surgery

Lagos State Government, Tuesday, announced the commencement of free total knee replacement surgery at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LASUTH, for the less-privileged indigenes.
Already, 12 total knee replacement surgeries had been done in the last three years.
Addressing journalists at a presentation ceremony of the latest beneficiaries of the exercise, Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris, explained that the state embarked on the exercise because of the high numbers of patients who applied to the state government for financial assistance to travel abroad for such surgery.

He said: "Lagos thought it wise to discontinue the trend of taking our resources abroad for surgery.

“By starting this exercise, we would not only discourage patronage of overseas treatment, but we would build local capacity for surgical procedures.”

"The state government, through this effort, would be saving a lot of the funds that would otherwise have gone to India and other places abroad aside performing the roles of caring for its citizens