The Exhorbitant Demand of Nigerian Doctors

The malady of doctors in the health sector has been left for too long. This has in several ways affected the health sector in Nigeria. As it is often heard of the discord and rancor occurring amidst the health workers, this discord which is however majorly spare-headed by the bigotry demands and proud ambitions of the doctors.

For some years now, the doctors through the NMA started clamoring for the adoption of the health bill formulated by some disgruntled elements. The bill is nothing but a poisoned apple. It looks beautiful and edible on the outside but inside of it lays the purpose of giving out the apple. The health bill was decked and decorated all over with supposed plans or instructions directed towards the care of the patient but in the center lies the proud ambition of the Nigeria doctors. The bill looks patient oriented but it is actually a selfish ambition of the doctors to be worshipped and adored. The Nigerian doctors have all this while seen themselves as all in all in the health sector whereas the system of operation is interdependence. One health care provider will have to wait for the finished work of another. Though doctors were given the privilege to head the hospital commission and as the minister of health, yet this does not mean they are the most qualified to be in such positions. The position is purely and administrative one and therefore should be made opened to other qualified clinical based health professionals.

These greedy cats have been making all effort to ensure they are the boss or chief personnel to regulate not only the practice of the other health care provider but also the training of the students as contained in the health bill; something which they will never condole if attempted by other healthcare providers. Isn’t it ridiculous? What did they learn in school of these other health professions? Needless to say that the peccadilloes of these doctors are responsible for the challenges in other health professions since the doctors illegally train quacks who would work as (nurses, lab scientist and pharmacists) whom they could over-exercise their lusted authority on. These ones however parade the health sector practicing what they were taught by the doctors and rubbing the names of the other profession in the mud due to their delirious and quackery practice. Obviously, their vicious act is no longer condoled by the new graduates of these other professions who see the work not just as one man job but as a skillful, scientific and interdisciplinary work. Their callous attitude may be as a result of the unwholesome gap in salary scale and allocations or regards for them in the health sector.

The most demobbing act was the one seen as the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) last week released a list of things that the government must compulsorily do giving a 14days ultimatum else they embark on an indefinite strike. The manner with which most of the things they were clamoring for was written is demeaning to the other health workers, after all they all hold the same qualifications. They keep mentioning that they have nothing to do with other health care professionals seeking an increment in salaries yet these fat cows insisted that the government have to increase the hazards allowance of the doctors and it must be 50% above that of other health care providers. Doctors who just spend few hours a day and few days a week with the patient in a correct hospital setting while the nurses stays virtually 24hours with the patient a day as some of them will be required to stay with the patients all through the night. Excuse me, who is more exposed to hazards in the hospital environment? Their greedy and subterfuge stand is clear at the detriment of the patient’s well-being. Many other selfish demands still in their request as they insist the hospital commission be headed by doctors who hold the same qualifications with their clinical health care provider counterparts. It should however be noted that this is not a diatribe. I hereby appeal to innocent Nigerians as well as the federal government to decry all these ambiguous and callous demands of the NMA discarding their threats in the interest of innocent Nigerians who come to the hospitals for care.

ADESUYI EMMANUEL O

OWERRI, IMO STATE

07033301600

cyrusdivinelib@gmail.com