President, Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) and Senior Registrar, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Dr. Olawale Oba, in this interview with Omolara Akintoye, argues that remunerations and incentives in the health sector should be based on contributions and specialisations.
WHAT is your stand on the on-going strike action by JOHESU?
The strike has taken different dimensions in terms of the positions and attitude of JOHESU members as regards their demands and positions on those demands. However, the hospital has been able to maintain some level of activities and services to those patients mainly by doctors – senior and junior doctors in the hospital. A lot of things that the nurses are doing, we have taken them up and that of the record officers. What may appear to be difficult situations like running laboratory investigations and so on, we refer patients to nearby laboratory centers. Putting all these into perspective, we’ve been able to maintain some degree of activities, performing some clinical services, attending to patients in the clinics. Emergencies that do not require admissions are also been done by doctors. Why admissions seem to be a bit difficult is because we need someone who will give continuous care in the ward. But in areas where we can also admit, we do so because some nurses are being employed to render services. This has to do with public private partnership, which is working perfectly.
Major operations may be difficult because you will need artilleries of other co-staff, but minor operations that just require basic sterilisation of small equipments that could be done either on outpatient basis are being done. For instance, in our IVF centers, we have small procedures whereby patients come in and we perform the operation on them and they go home, not necessarily involving any other health worker.
For how long can doctors cope with this situation?
Coping with this for too long, sincerely, I will say we don’t hope for. However, if the health workers remain adamant and continue with the strike until their demands are met…. Some the demands are genuine and some are super flaws demands that are not found in any other parts of the world. Continuing with the strike action, in the interest of Nigerians, is not the best, but if it persists we would have to make do with what is presently available.
Give examples of some of their demands that cannot be found in any other parts of the world.
Demands such as having parity with doctors; we consider that unachievable; reason being that many times, there are different levels of participation, involvement and intellectual engagements; so putting all these together, everybody cannot be on the same level. In an organisation, we have different cadres of staff on different levels, and all of them are not earning the same salaries, although all of them are important. Everything has to be based on what you contribute to the system. As a matter of fact, even within the medical circle itself, there should be incentives based on your specialisation. For example, you can’t pay a Neurosurgeon the same as the physician or a community health worker. We haven’t got to that level because Nigeria is evolving and it’s unfortunate that we are evolving very slowly. But by the time we get to that level, everyone will be placed appropriately and all the bickering will stop.
However, concerning the genuine demands of JOHESU, government should try as much as possible to meet them.
