By Ayo Yusuf
The effect of the serial migration of highly trained medical workers from the country to seek better prospects abroad has led to the closure of some departments in the nation’s teaching hospitals, the Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria, MDCAN, has said.
The association raised the alarm over this new crisis caused by the brain drain in the nation’s health institutions during its 13th Biennial Delegates meeting and scientific conference in Kano.
Newly-elected President of the association, Prof. Muhammad Muhammad, lamented that no fewer than 500 specialist doctors with specialty in teaching had migrated.
According to Prof. Muhammad, “The survey we conducted some two years ago shows that, about 500 specialist doctors have left Nigeria.
Muhammad further expanded on the pressing issue: “These are apex of the profession. They are the ones that are involved in teaching and nurturing of new generation doctors from both medical schools and training specialist in Nigeria.
“With the alarming rate of migration (‘Japa’), some departments are closing or left with one or two doctors who render services that were supposed to be rendered by 10 of them.
“It will take the country almost 10 years to replace the number by the rate at which we are producing. You can see that it is in alarming proportion. And after that, it has only gotten worse.
“The challenges of brain drain in the health sector have remained unabated with migration of highly skilled health care professionals not only out of Africa but also to the neighbouring West African countries.
“The Government is urged to as a matter of urgency; provide holistic solutions to the challenges of brain drain, which should include incentives that encourage retention of the already depleted health care human resource in Nigeria.
“If there is no improvement in current condition in terms of infrastructure, working condition and security, it will be difficult to prevent people from moving out (‘Japa’).
“Medical Education is under threat, mainly due to the large numbers of specialists and trainers migrating to other climes.
“A number of universities presently has less training quota than the manpower and infrastructure in the institution can effectively train.
“Concerted efforts should be made by the Governments to motivate its available human resources for health in order to sustain and improve on the quality of undergraduate and postgraduate medical trainings in Nigeria.”
Earlier on Saturday during a briefing with newsmen, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, had also noted that the 400,000 healthcare workforce in Nigeria is insufficient to cater to the healthcare needs of Nigerians.
Prof. Pate was speaking after his three-day briefing session with departments and agencies under the ministry with the hope of charting a blueprint for Nigeria’s healthcare system.
According to prof. Pate, the 400,000 workforce comprised community health workers, nurses, midwives, pharmacists, physicians, lab scientists, technicians, and auxiliaries working in the Nigerian healthcare system.
His words: “They are not enough if you think that this number can take care of 220 million people. Our doctor-to-population ratio is lower than what the World Health Organisation expects.
“So there’s still room to produce more. In fact, to produce excess because globally, there’s a shortage of health manpower, there is almost a shortage of 18 million people.
“In developed countries where they are aging, they are retiring so they need more people to provide services.
“So if we think about it, we can produce for our own needs and if some leave then they go and earn resources and they come back with some experience.”
Prof. Pate, however, said that if infrastructure was improved, and people were treated with respect, some of them would come back to serve the country.
Further according to him: “So I don’t want to undervalue the contribution of the workers that we have.
“We have to acknowledge them, celebrate them, make life easier for them even as we train more or re-train the ones that we have even as we work to resolve their issues.
“We really value the Nigerian health workforce and will continue to support and develop that going forward.”
Speaking on ending medical tourism, the minister said that the trend was present in almost all countries whether developed or developing as people leave the U.S. to East Asia to have surgical procedures because it is more affordable there.
He added: “However, what seems to be an issue is using public financing to fund it and missing the opportunity to keep some of the resources used in engaging in medical tourism back in the country.
“When I mentioned unlocking the healthcare value-chain, it includes mobilising private capital to invest in the physical infrastructure and the human resources so that some of the services that people go to India for, we will have them here.
“We have begun discussing mechanisms or models where we’ll go on that path as part of expanding the value chain so that it’s not necessarily publicly financed.
“So if you want to have plastic surgery, there’s no need to use government money to pay for your plastic surgery but if we have a facility that will do that here for you, we will keep your dollars here and employ a few attendants here to do the procedure for you.”
