The Nation Newspaper

Tag: PHCs

  • Health workers, set for nationwide strike in PHCs, general and teaching hospitals

    The Assembly of Healthcare professionals and Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) have directed all its members nationwide in primary health care centres ( PHCs), general/specialist hospitals and teaching hospitals to embark on a three day warning strike from Wednesday 22 to Friday 24 of this month.

    It had never been in Nigeria, pre and post independence, that the workers of the three tiers of health care would embark on a strike simultaneously, even now that the nation is marking its centenary anniversary.

    In a statement made available to The Nation, the presidents of the coalition urged all members to comply fully with the three-day warning strike.

    “Instructions and directives to the contrary from any other quarters should be ignored. Presidents and chairmen of associations and unions are kindly requested to issue further directives to their members in all zones, branches, sectors, chapters and hospitals for adequate mobilization and full compliance to this directive,” the statement said.

    Arising from the meeting between the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) and JOHESU/Assembly of Healthcare Professional Associations yesterday, and after an exhaustive appraisal of the level of implementation of previous agreements and MOUs signed with the FMOH, the delegates issued a directive to all its members nationwide to proceed on a warning strike to protest what they described as, “the grave injustice and persistent industrial discrimination against our members.”

    In the statement signed by all the Presidents of the bodies that formed JOHESU, they said the warning strike was to help the government to redress the injustice within 14 days after the warning strike, “failing which an indefinite nationwide withdrawal of services from primary health care to tertiary levels will continue forthwith.”

    They stated that “whereas the Federal Ministry of Health and various hospitals/parastatals had said there were no funds to pay arrears of skipped CONHESS 10 and specialist allowance illegally denied our members, but suddenly there are now funds to pay jumbo allowances and newly approved increases in the CONMESS salary scale.

    “The continued reign of impunity, arbitrariness and non-implementation of duly approved schemes of service of our members in hospitals and ministries must stop forthwith.

    “The violation and infringement of our professional liberties despite court judgments and clear statutory provisions will no longer be tolerated.

    “This has led to the gross mismanagement of the resources of our hospitals and the attendant adverse effect on the provision of services for patient care.

    “No wonder therefore, medical tourism has continued to increase.”

    They equally stated: “The selective and discriminatory increases in wages and allowances of one group in a multidisciplinary sector without commensurate treatment to other members of the sector is not only provocative and insensitive but runs counter to social justice and equity.

    Government is called upon to redress this anomaly immediately for the sustenance of incentive and commitment for patient care in our hospitals.”

  • Health workers begin warning strike Jan 15

    Health workers begin warning strike Jan 15

    •Oppose appointment of surgeon-general

    The Assembly of Health Care Professionals (AHCP) and the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) have directed their members in primary health care centres (PHCs), general/specialists and teaching hospitals to begin a five-day warning strike from January 15 till January 21.

    The assembly said the action followed the request by the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) that a surgeon-general for the federation be appointed.

    The position exists only in the United States, occupied by a care provider with military background on special assignments, often likened to the peace corps.

    The Office of the Assistant Secretary of Health, to which the surgeon-general reports in the U.S., is junior to that of the minister of state for Health in Nigeria.

    The surgeon-general in the U.S. works with commissioned corps officers, who include over 6,700 uniformed health officers from various professions and serve around the world.

    The health care providers in JOHESU and the Assembly of Health Care Professionals, represented by their presidents, addressed reporters yesterday in Lagos.

    They said the appointment of a surgeon-general was unconstitutional and unlawful.

    President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) Mr Olumide Akintayo, the spokesman of the bodies, said: “The government is advised to remember the consequences of the unlawful Medical Salary Scale (MSS) of the 1990s, which was the precursor to the industrial disharmony in the public service where different cadres of workers agitated for discriminatory and exclusive wages.

    “The move to appoint a surgeon-general will lead to demands for such by all cadres of workers and, therefore, makes the government vulnerable to strikes and shut-downs.

    “The warning strike is to enable the Federal Government, led by President Goodluck Jonathan, to redress the prayers and grievances as reflected in this position paper which shall be made available to the government.

    “In the event that the government does not enter into dialogue within two weeks of this notice, we shall begin a nationwide strike.”

    The spokesman said: “We also desire the circulation of the approval of consultancy status for some cadres of health workers and the payment of arrears to honorary consultants appointed by the boards of management of hospitals, which were arbitrarily stopped on the directive of the Minister of Health, since December 15, 2010.

    “Our demand is in line with due process, as dictated by the pronouncement of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) in July 2013 and the agreement between the representatives of JOHESU and representatives of government in August.

    “We demand the release of official circulars to enforce the decision of the National Industrial Court that some cadres of health workers be allowed to skip CONHESS 10. The Federal Government/Presidency must direct the boards of management of hospitals to enforce this directive.

    “There must be a presidential directive compelling the Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission to approve reasonable and respectable allowances, as well as emoluments for health workers, as indicated in the agreement with the government since December 2009.”

    The spokesman listed some alleged cases of injustice in the Health sector which must be addressed, including “an amendment of the extremely obnoxious Act 10 of 1985, which laid the foundation for oppression in the sector through appointments unduly skewed in favour of doctors.

    “Redressing the wretched output of the National Health Insurance Scheme, which has provided cover for less than three of the citizenry in 15 years under the poor management of doctors who have been appointed executive secretaries in the last eight years…”

    Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP) has also threatened to begin a strike, if the Federal Government appoints a surgeon-general.

    In a statement by its President Felix Faniran and Secretary Obinna Ogbonna, NUAHP said the nation should prepare for an industrial unrest from other health care workers, should the government create the post.

    It said appointing a surgeon-general was a bad idea because “it would lead to agitation by other health care professionals.”

    Leaders of various unions in Health urged influential Nigerians to prevail on the government to redress the impending crises in the sector.

    They included the Chairman, Joint Health Sector, Comrade Wabba Ayuba; President, National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, Abdulrafiu Adeniji; President, Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria/Chairman, Assembly of Health Care Professional Associations, Dr Godswill C. Okara; President, Nigeria Society of Physiotherapy, Taiwo Oyewunmi; President, Association of Radiographers of Nigeria, Dr Mark Okeji and President, Health Information Managers Association of Nigeria, Wole Ajayi.