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51 Days After, Resident Doctors Vow To Continue Strike

51 days after, resident doctors vow to continue strike

The National Association of Resident Doctors has insisted that it will not call off its ongoing strike until its demands are met.

The association said this despite the Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire’s meeting with its leadership on Monday.

Theharmattannews learnt that Monday was the first time Ehanire was meeting the leadership of NARD without the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, since the strike started 51 days ago.

Before now, Ngige has been the one spearheading meetings with representatives of NARD in a bid to end the strike.

The Secretary General of NARD, Dr Jerry Isogun, confirmed the meeting with Ehanire in an interview on Tuesday.

Isogun said, “The minister (Ehanire) met with us for the first time on Monday, without the presence of the minister of labour and employment.

“He spoke to us and explained some things to us and said he was working really hard to make sure that issues were resolved.

“We also shared our grievances with him. He listened and he said he would get back to us and make sure that everything is resolved.”

When asked if the association had faith in Ehanire and if the strike would be called off immediately, the NARD secretary said, “Of course, we trust him and we believe he is going to do as he promised.

“Like I said, that was the first time he was meeting us and he had promised to get back. Though he didn’t say when he would do so.

“It doesn’t mean we are calling off the strike immediately. Our position still holds. Pay us our money and rectify all the outstanding issues and then strike will be called off.”

The NARD declared the strike action on July 30 at its National Executive Council meeting with the theme ‘The Nigerian doctor, an endangered species: grappling with a pandemic, poor workplace infrastructure and security threats.’

Announcing that the action would begin on August 2 after the meeting held in Umuahia, Abia State, the National President of NARD, Dr Okhuaihesuyi Uyilawa, cited the failure of the Federal Government to implement the agreements it signed with the union 113 days after it suspended the previous strike as the reason for the fresh strike.

Some of the demands include the migration of doctors from the GIFMIS (the government integrated financial management system) platform to the IPPIS (Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System) platform, review of hazard allowance, inconsistency in payment of salaries, death allowances for members of the association who died during COVID-19.

In a related development, members of the House of Representatives on Tuesday lamented that public hospitals in the country had been deserted  because of the strike by NARD.

The House  Committee on Health Institutions led by Pascal Obi raised this concern when the committee visited the Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Aro, Abeokuta,  as part of its oversight functions.

The House committee toured the medical centre and visited projects such as  the isolation centre, the intensive care unit and the molecular laboratory.

Obi urged doctors and the  Federal Government to embrace compromise so as to make healthcare accessible to the masses.

He said, “On the issue of the strike by the resident doctors, the matter is before a court of competent jurisdiction and the court will definitely do justice to it, but I am calling for compromise both from the side of the Federal Government and the side of the union of the doctors who are on strike.”

“This is what should be done in the interest of the patients because now, the hospitals have all been deserted.  The resident doctors are the ones doing most of the jobs in the hospitals.”

Health

We will closely align with development-focused org to enhance quality healthcare – Tinubu

President Bola Tinubu says the federal government will continue to partner reputable organizations such as Rotary International in ongoing efforts to eradicate all forms of polio and reduce the prevalence of maternal and infant mortality in the country.

President Tinubu, who received Rotary International President, Mr. Gordon Mclnally, his wife, Heather; Rotary’s Polio Ambassador to Nigeria, Sir Emeka Offor, and other notable Rotarians, on Friday, at the State House in Abuja, commended the organization for its various interventions in the country’s health sector, including a new grant of $14 million to enable the World Health Organization (WHO) provide technical assistance to the government of Nigeria on polio surveillance.

The President declared that it is a national obligation for the government to prioritize the welfare of Nigerians, support their advancement, and ensure that they are not hindered by any form of disease.

”It is a joy to have the President of Rotary International, his wife, Sir Emeka Offor, and other Rotarians in our midst. Thank you for representing a great commitment to humanity. Thank you for the job you are doing. Rotary International has a good reputation on social commitment, not only for the leading role it played in the eradication of polio in Africa, but also in addressing other diseases.

”You have saved countless mothers and children. You are also contributing to the growth of local economies by helping nations combat unforeseen diseases and deaths. You are doing a great job in the protection of the environment and other areas of humanitarian commitment,” President Tinubu said.

The President acknowledged the contributions of volunteers from Rotary Clubs in Nigeria who have been instrumental in supporting polio eradication initiatives in the country.

”Whatever is necessary for us to do, I want to assure you that the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare and his team will be on call and available at any time,” the President stated.

The President of Rotary International, Mr. Gordon McInally, while lauding President Tinubu’s longstanding reputation for supporting healthcare interventions for disadvantaged Nigerians throughout his public service career, offered honorary Rotary membership to the Nigerian leader in recognition of his past and present efforts to rapidly enhance Nigeria’s health sector.

Earlier in his remarks, Mr. Mclnally highlighted Nigeria’s support for global polio eradication efforts and polio-free status, having been certified as a polio-free nation in 2020, against the backdrop of only 12 polio cases recorded worldwide last year, which were concentrated on the Afghan-Pakistan border.

”The polio eradication campaign has been our flagship programme for many years. Over the years, we have been working on it, and we have seen Nigeria certified polio-free a few years ago.

”We have reduced the incidence from over 350,000 cases of polio worldwide every year to only 12 cases last year, in the Afghan-Pakistan border. So, we are on the verge of eliminating polio from the world, but we could not have achieved this without the active support of Nigeria. We thank you very much for everything that you have done.

”We must remain vigilant and continue our efforts in this field. Rotarians here in Nigeria are tirelessly working to ensure that children worldwide do not suffer from any crippling disease that can even take their lives,” he said.

Mr. McInally further pledged that the organization would continue to collaborate with the Nigerian government on programmes to reduce infant and maternal mortality.

”It is only by working together with governments that we can achieve great things,” he concluded.

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Health

500 Patients Have Benefitted From Ogun Free Surgical Intervention Programne In One Week – Abiodun

L-R: Director Hospital Services, Federal Ministry of Health, Dr. Jimoh Salaudeen; Chief Medical Director, University of Uyo Teaching Hospital and Chairman, Committee of Chief Medical Directors and Medical Directors of Federal Tertiary Hospitals in Nigeria, Prof. Emem Bassey; Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun and the Chief Medical Director of the Federal Medical Center, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Prof. Musa Olomu during a courtesy visit to the Governor's Office at Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, on Thursday.

Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun has disclosed that over 500 surgeries have been performed on patients under his administration’s Free Surgical Intervention Programme in the last one week.

Governor Abiodun made the disclosure when he received the Committee of Chief Medical Directors and Medical Directors of Federal Tertiary Hospitals in Nigeria who paid him a courtesy call in his office at Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta on Thursday.

The governor said the free surgery programme was designed to provide succour to the poor and vulnerable who could not afford medical bills at this difficult time.

He said his government has also done a lot to improve the healthcare sector in the Gateway State since 2019.

Prince Abiodun said: “We have also implemented our Health Insurance Programme called Ilera Dero and the Ibidero for the women. As of now, because of the prevalent economic situation, we have decided that all our women and children, the poor and vulnerable should go to our Primary Healthcare Centres and secondary or tertiary hospitals in the state. We will register them under our Free Health Insurance Programme.

“Our pregnant women, when they go to the hospital, they get free pre and post-natal attention. After they put to bed, they also get N10,000.”

Governor Abiodun disclosed that the state is creating a database that would track a family or community, and the kind of disease prevalent among them as well as compiling records at the grassroots that would enable the government to predict predominant diseases that are in the family, community or area and treat them appropriately.

Speaking on the situation at the 250-bed hospital located at Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, the governor noted that his administration is collaborating with a partner, as part of its medical architecture, to run and make it a centre of medical excellence, to engender medical tourism in the country.

Prince Abiodun noted that medical institutions in the state are wearing new looks as his government has employed a large number of medical personnel and purchased new equipment to make them render quality service to the people.

The state helmsman described the relationship between the state’s Ministry of Health and the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, as cordial.

“We do not see the difference between the FMC, Abeokuta, and our own Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), because when there is a problem, we rush the patient to the nearest available medical facility. This has, over the years, helped us in dealing with difficult situations,” he added.

He commended the Committee for initiating the meeting, noting that it would help them review each other’s research, development, and new techniques that could be of assistance in dealing with different types of illnesses and diseases.

Speaking earlier, chairman of the Committee and Chief Medical Director, University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, Uyo, Prof Emem Bassey, commended Governor Abiodun for investing in the health sector, emphasizing that the increased funding, recruitment of different categories of health workers and renovation of over 100 Primary Healthcare Centres across the state, was worthy of note.

He said the Committee members, consisting of all heads of federal medical institutions, were in the state for its 106th Regular Meeting to review and learn from each other to impact positively in their different hospitals at the end of the meeting.

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Health

No more leave of absence for health workers, Minister declares

The Minister of State for Health, Dr Tunji Alausa, has announced a new policy prohibiting health workers from taking leave of absence.

He also informed the public of the ministry’s plan to recruit 120,000 additional nurses.

“The government has put a rule in place that says healthcare workers can’t take time off if they want to work abroad,” he said.

He added that if health workers wanted to go abroad for better opportunities, they would have to quit their jobs.

Alausa revealed this on Saturday during his visit to the Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital in Aro, Ogun State.

According to him, President Bola Tinubu’s Executive Order addresses brain drain in the health sector, otherwise known as ‘Japa Syndrome’.

He also declared that the yearly number of nurse recruitment increased significantly from about 28,000 to 68,000 in 2023.

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