By Kemi Olatunde

|

Doctors play important role in the health sector as they can be said to be the strong pillars on which the sector stands. Doctors save lives, but their importance goes far beyond that. Doctors also make a difference by helping patients minimize pain, recover from a disease faster or learn to live with a disabling injury. A patient’s ability to enjoy life, even if they can’t be cured, makes a huge difference to them and to their families. And, that’s only part of what makes doctors important to the society. Doctors’ roles in society extend far beyond individual patient’s health. Doctors help prevent diseases by educating patients about basic health.

Nigeria in recent times has experienced relocation of good number of Doctors and other medical professionals to foreign countries as they went in search of greener pastures. Ondo State is not left out as the scenario is not strange but it is important to note that good hands are still on ground to do the job.

However, discreet investigation by The Hope revealed that some doctors posted to health facilities outside the state capital have been found wanting at their duty posts, making it difficult for patients to access them when necessary.

An impeccable source from the State Hospitals’ Management Board (HMB) who craved anonymity frowned at the level of indiscipline some of the doctors display. Some of them have been said to travel out of the country without proper notification to the board, hence getting their salaries even without any commitment to government. Some of them decide the days to go to work without obtaining necessary permission from the authority.

According to the source; “If these doctors are not ready to work, they should leave the system and let us declare their offices vacant. Most of them earn as high as N800000 and still abscond from work.

“We still have doctors in the state, just that a good number of them especially outside the state capital, don’t show up at their duty posts.

“Government should stop indulging NMA. Some of them travel outside the country for three months without even writing a letter to that effect and their salary will still be ongoing. Why are doctors losing integrity? Most of them travelling out of the country don’t go through the normal procedure. When they need recommendation letter from HMB and they don’t get it, they begin to call the authority unprintable names forgetting that they have played smart on the system at the initial stage of their trip.”

This reporter was at the Akure complex of UNIMED Teaching hospital where there was a beehive of activities at the different departments, though some doctors were on ground performing their roles but some patients said that they were unable to access some doctors on some specific days.

A senior health official told The Hope; “Each department has clinic days which is always on operation. Some patients get to the hospital without asking for direction and as such, stay in an inappropriate department for several hours with no one to attend to them.

“Also, between, September 2023 and February 2024, the facility operated palliative services whereby patients didn’t pay for consultation. After the expiration of the palliative services, it became difficult for them to adapt.

A doctor, Olawale Idowu said that amidst inadequate doctors, the ones on ground are being over used.

“In some facilities for instance, State Specialist Hospital, Okitipupa, by 4pm, there will not see a single doctor to attend to patients. It is easy to complain because doctors are leaving. The environment is poor and that is why those left behind need to be commended.

“Despite our sacrifice, patients beat us up and that is the challenge. There are still doctors that want to work in Nigeria but for the condition of service.

“For Unimed, the entry point of doctors is better as we come in on level 13 while others in HMB come in on level 12.

“Doctors earn beautiful salaries now and everybody is begging them. In neighbouring states, they enter on level 13.”

He called on government to improve the renumeration of doctors saying”, it is not out of place to give special grants to doctors and investment in the health sector must improve.”

Not quite long, Ondo State chapter of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) called on the state government to address the issue of shortage of resident doctors in state-owned hospitals.

The association said many of the doctors in the state had left for foreign countries for greener pasture, while some who are still in Nigeria had left.

The state Chairman of the NMA, Dr Omosehin Adeyemi-Osowe, said the state had only 22 resident doctors out of 150 in the previous years as a result of the exodus of the doctors.

At a stakeholders’ meeting on Orange Health Insurance Scheme (ORANGHIS) last Thursday,

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr. Adeniran Ikuomola said that the ministry will sanction health workers who fail to provide qualitative service to residents calling on them to support the scheme to improve the health sector.

While speaking extensively, he stated that plans are underway to improve the quality of care in health facilities across the state, noting that government will continue to improve the welfare of health workers through regular payment of salary and promotion of staff as and when due.

He said; “We know the relevance of manpower in the facilities; we are aware of the shortage of staff but we believe that we can improve the quality of service with the available number of staff by bringing out the best in them.

“Government is doing the needful to ensure regular payment and promotion of staff and that is why the Ministry is planning to engage stakeholders in dialogue so that all can put in their best in ensuring that they give qualitative care to residents of the state.”

While commenting on the unavailability of some doctors on their duty post, he said that he is yet to receive any report on it adding that the Ministry will not condole any form of indiscipline from any health workers.

“I have not received any report concerning that but when such gets to us, we contact the relevant agency for investigation and also ensure that such officer is brought to book.” He said.

He called on health workers on the need to be up and doing in ensuring qualitative health care delivery to residents adding that “you should allow people have trust in our facilities so as to live healthy.”