THE EXODUS OF NIGERIAN DOCTORS
Government must give attention to the health sector of the economy
Due to both lack of job fulfilment and inadequate remunerations, Nigerian medical practitioners are leaving the country in droves for Canada, United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other Asian, European and American countries where their services are required and the reward systems are better. This latest form of brain drain poses huge challenge to our beleaguered health sector and should worry the authorities in our country.
Apparently concerned by the development, a lecturer at the University of Maiduguri recently wrote an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari, pleading with him to stem what he described as ‘mass exodus’ from Nigeria of medical personnel. Although the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) had in January this year warned about the danger of a situation in which there were 4,000 patients to one doctor in our country, many other stakeholders have waded in. The latest came from a UK-based Nigerian doctor, Dr Harvey Olufunmilayo, who raised the alarm about the number of his colleagues who now seek to migrate to the UK.
In March this year, according to Olufunmilayo, “about 1,500 doctors wrote the Plab1 exam to work in the UK and about 1,000 passed. In a country that one doctor cares for about 4,000 patients, losing 1,000 doctors means four million Nigerians will find it harder to see a doctor. We are playing with fire as a nation. The same exam is written twice a year in Nigeria. And with more hardship, more doctors will be writing by November 2018. And we are yet to talk of those going to other countries like USA or Canada.”
To begin with, the frequent face-off between doctors
THE BASIC OBJECTIVE OF ALL DEVELOPMENTS IS TO GET THE PEOPLE TO ENJOY HEALTHY AND CREATIVE LIVES
and the government has not only left an indelible stain on the image of the public health care system in Nigeria but has also brought untold hardship, deprivation, humiliation and frustration to the embattled medical doctors, their wives, children and relatives. It is therefore no surprise that many of our medical doctors have resorted to fleeing Nigeria in search of greener pastures abroad.
However, the timing of this migration is antithetical to the health of our country. Reports from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and UNICEF reveal that Nigeria has the third worst infant mortality rate in the world. Nigeria is also the second country in the world with the highest number of people living with HIV/AIDS. Nigeria is the first country in the world with the highest number of malnourished children. Nigeria is the first country in the world with the highest number of people lacking access to basic primary health care.
Cancer epidemic is on the rampage. The life expectancy in Nigeria is 53. Ordinary primary health care system for prevention of preventable diseases such as polio, cholera and measles is virtually non-existent in different parts of Nigeria. Infrastructure and equipment in medical centres across the country are in a shambles. The consequence is that several Nigerians now habitually fly to India and other countries to obtain what they consider quality health services at a very huge cost to our economy.
It is noteworthy that in the course of his campaign for office, President Buhari promised to end medical tourism if elected. As it would happen, he has become the chief medical tourist in the country. The first anchor in our strategy to improve the wellbeing of the average Nigerian is to provide the citizenry with an unimpeded access to functional primary health care system. The basic objective of all developments is to get the people to enjoy healthy and creative lives. It is no use sermonising on corruption when the people lack access to basic primary health care.