Several millions of Nigerians present their health cases before their doctors at these facilities daily, while others for some reasons, especially finance, patronize the traditional healers. By and large, given our fast growing urbanization, a very large proportion of our population relies on the medical doctors for expertise on health matters. So this is why the ongoing industrial action embarked upon by the doctors has been a cause for concern, especially to the rural folks and the poor across the country.
If our country were one governed by data, it would have been possible to access the number of deaths recorded across the land as result of the industrial action in the last two months and seven days. Sadly, most of the casualties are the poorest of the poor that patronize the same government medical facilities. The rich in our midst may not mind the doctors staying on their industrial action for the next one year!
The case of the Nigerian doctors that are on strike is even more shameful now than before because of the global concern on the outbreak of Ebola virus disease now ravaging West Africa. Our doctors are on strike when their counterparts in other parts of the world are rallying their expertise and sharing medical intelligence to save lives of victims. Our doctors are cruel; they are more interested in money, even when they merely attend to their official engagements at the hospitals. These our doctors do not love their patients at the government facility anymore; they rather have them transferred to private medical facilities for their selfish gains, even when they know that such facilities lack the needed facilities needed to fast rack effective treatment. It is disgusting, what these doctors are doing in our health sector.
In this time and season of Ebola, our doctors are shamelessly saying they do not have anything to do with the government hospitals, expectedly, referral points for prospective Ebola patients. I am not expecting them back soon either, because they are already apprehensive of possibly being cut down by the virus, especially now that they are smarting from the case of the nurse that lost her life following the contact she had with the late Sawyer in the course of attending to him.
Nobody should be deceived to believing that the NMA is fighting for improved infrastructure at the hospitals. I doubt it! Should such even manifest, it is the same doctors that may be tempted to appropriate it to their personal benefit by possibly converting them for the treatment of patients from their private clinics after they could have collected huge sums of money from the same patients.
My prayer every day is for the almighty God and the greatest physician to continue to keep me strong to avoid having any contacts with them.
I heaved a sigh of relief few days ago when I heard the Comrade Governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole, pouring venom on the same NMA. He said: “It hurts me that people that the world is focusing on, especially in this period when people talk about Ebola Virus which has no cure yet, are on strike. We can play with everything, but we shouldn’t play with human lives.
“However, because people can leave work for as long as they want with the slightest provocation if there is any, and then return to collect accumulated salaries with taxes collected from patients who are dying, then the problem will continue.
“I am a worker, I’ve been a Union leader, I have organized strikes but I understand the difference between essential services, life-saving sector vis-à-vis other sectors.
“So we need a robust debate on how to reposition the health sector and it will be your lot to ensure that those who receive money from government in the name of service put in commensurate work.
“A situation in which somebody who is supposed to be at the Central Hospital or at the Stella Obasanjo Hospital or at the Auchi General Hospital or other General Hospitals is diverting patients to private clinics will certainly be unacceptable.” A word is enough for the wise!
