The mass exodus of doctors and health workers in other specialties has left Nigeria grappling with a shortage of manpower.
Amid this, the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors has revealed that no fewer than 1,417 of its members are planning to leave for the United Kingdom and the United States before the end of 2023.
NARD also revealed that over 900 of its members left for Europe between January and September 2023, expressing concern over Nigeria’s poor health sector and the rate of doctors’ exodus.
President of the NARD, Dr Dele Abdullahi who disclosed this during an exclusive interview with newsmen, attributed the exodus of doctors from Nigeria to poor working conditions.
President Bola Tinubu had on Tuesday, December 12, appealed to Nigerian health workers practising abroad to “sacrifice their time to come back home and serve their people.”
He said his administration was prioritising and improving Nigeria’s health sector through massive investments and an increased allocation of funds in the proposed 2024 budget.
The Nigerian Medical Association says low remunerations, poor facilities, and insecurity are forcing doctors out of the country.
Findings by mewsmen indicate that Pakistan and Nigeria have the highest number of doctors in the UK, which is about the total number of doctors back home.
Statistics from the World Health Organisation show that Nigeria currently has a shortage of medical doctors with a physician-to-patient ratio of four doctors to 10,000 patients.
Meanwhile, in the US, the ratio is 26 doctors per 10,000 people and 28 in the UK.
Speaking with our correspondent, Abdullahi, said Nigerians will no longer have access to quality and affordable healthcare if the japa syndrome remains unchecked.
He said it was unfortunate that many hospitals in the country lacked basic medical equipment.
According to him, the working conditions in the country are horrible, saying, “When better opportunities come, our doctors leave. It is beyond what people think.”
The NARD leader said, “Between January to September 2023, the data that we have is that over 900 resident doctors have left the system for the UK and the US.
“Then we have 1,417 that showed interest and plan to leave before the end of the year.
Most resident doctors leave for the UK and the US. Now, we have two major problems. We have a chronic loss that has resulted in a chronic shortage of manpower within all the healthcare systems.
“The continuous ongoing loss is now causing problems. The problem is not what happens at the end of the year but what is happening continually. We have ongoing data and we are getting this information continuously.”
Abdullahi said a lot of Nigerian doctors who travelled abroad would have loved to work at home but could not bear the terrible working conditions anymore.
“A lot of people talk about remuneration, but there are so many other factors such as job satisfaction within your institution, the security within your society and the toxic work environment”, he added.
He urged the government to urgently address the problem to avoid a total collapse of the sector.
The NMA described the ongoing migration of medical doctors as the “second peak of doctors’ mass exodus” after the mass departure of medical practitioners from the country in the 1990s.
A former President of the NMA, Professor Innocent Ujah, said doctors cannot be stopped from migrating.
He, however, said there was a need to improve the pay and work conditions of Nigerian doctors as this was the best incentive.
The former NMA leader stated, “This is the second peak of doctors’ mass exodus from the country. In the 1990s, doctors left Nigeria for Saudi Arabia and they are leaving again.
“I think what is happening is that they are not receiving the satisfaction they deserve. The work environment is not encouraging, and the practice equipment is inadequate.
The salary is meagre. They go to where their service is appreciated.
“The issue of insecurity is also there, many doctors have been kidnapped. We don’t know if the kidnappers are targeting them or if it is just a coincidence. What I think should be done holistically is for the government to conduct research and find out why the doctors are leaving.”
Tinubu at an event to mark Universal Health Coverage Day, observed annually on December 12, announced plans for a comprehensive revamp of physical infrastructure, equipment and the re-training of frontline health workers starting in 2024.
“Nigeria’s commitment to achieving Universal Health Care Coverage is reflected in the unwavering dedication of my administration to uphold this right for every individual, young or old, in rural or urban areas,” the President said
Credit: Punch
Leave a Reply