Doctors under the aegis of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) have suspended their proposed nationwide daily protest following a closed-door discussion with the leadership of the Senate figures.
NARD’s President Emeka Orji, confirmed the decision after meeting with Senate officials, adding that the situation would be reviewed within the next 72 hours.
The resident doctors who initiated an indefinite industrial action since July 26th over the government’s failure to meet their demands, had slated Wednesday (today) for a peaceful protest after the directive to federal tertiary hospitals to implement a “no work, no pay” policy.
A letter dated August 1st conveyed the government’s instruction to hospitals, stipulating the enforcement of the policy and the maintenance of an attendance register for resident doctors choosing to continue working amid the strike.
The striking doctors, however, asserted that the government lacked moral grounds for such an action. They claimed that the government had focused on “demonizing” them instead of addressing the fundamental challenges responsible for the ongoing industrial action.
Expressing appreciation for the doctors’ willingness to call off the protest and their ongoing efforts towards ending the strike, Senate President Godswill Akpabio assured that their grievances would be addressed promptly once a new Health Minister is appointed.
Prior to suspending the planned protest, the doctors threatened to initiate a daily peaceful protest if their demands were not met.
The striking doctors list of demands includes the immediate disbursement of the 2023 Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF), concrete measures towards increasing the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS), and settlement of salary arrears owed to members since 2015.
They are calling for an immediate review of hazard allowances across state governments and private tertiary healthcare institutions involved in any form of residency training and advocating for substantial recruitment of clinical staff in hospitals and the elimination of bureaucratic hindrances to the immediate replacement of departing doctors and nurses.
With the majority of medical personnel in Nigeria’s tertiary hospitals being resident doctors, their strikes invariably disrupt healthcare services.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports in view of the ongoing standoff between the Nigerian government and resident doctors, many public hospitals send away patients, including those requiring urgent medical attention.
At the Garki hospital in Abuja, which is managed under a Public Private Partnership, doctors were seen attending to patients, but too many cases were turned away on account of lack of bed space or referred to a nearby private hospital.
A family recounted their experience to our reporter, revealing that they sought medical assistance for a relative who had suffered a partial stroke.
However, they were told there was no bed space and directed to a private hospital were they spent over N200, 000 receiving treatment in less than 24 hours.
“Ultimately, we found themselves at Nisa Premier Hospital, where my dad was admitted for about12 hours. Yet we were presented a bill of over N200,000,” a spokesperson for the family said.
This exorbitant expense is far beyond what an average Nigerian family can bear without incurring severe financial strain, especially when it results from such unforeseen medical emergencies.
The harrowing reality is that existing gap between the healthcare needs of the population and the resources available to them, often force individuals and families to explore self-medication which could potentially result in life-altering consequences.