…Hospitals Turn Away Patients, Discharge Inpatients
…FG Begs Striking Workers to Return
By Peter Salami
Nigeria’s public health sector was thrown into turmoil yesterday as nurses and midwives across the country commenced a seven-day warning strike, crippling activities in public hospitals and leaving patients stranded.
The industrial action, declared by the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), is in protest against poor working conditions, inadequate staffing, insufficient remuneration, and the Federal Government’s failure to implement long-standing welfare agreements.
The aggrieved health workers are demanding the gazetting of the revised nursing scheme of service, enforcement of the 2012 Industrial Act, upward review of professional allowances, and urgent recruitment of additional nursing personnel.
President of NANNM, Michael Nnachi, issued a stern warning that unless the government addresses their demands within the seven-day window, the strike could escalate into a full-blown, indefinite shutdown of nursing services nationwide.
“This strike is a litmus test. If our demands are ignored, we will pursue a more serious and sustained struggle,” Nnachi declared.
From Oyo to Kwara, Bayelsa to Osun, public hospitals have been thrown into disarray as nurses enforced the strike action, turning away sick Nigerians and discharging inpatients regardless of their conditions.
At Adeoyo State Hospital in Ibadan, many wards were deserted as patients were discharged en masse. Relatives of patients narrated harrowing experiences of having to take loved ones home, even those in critical condition.
“My mother just had surgery on her leg and can’t walk, yet we were asked to leave. Doctors are trying their best, but there are no nurses to attend to her,” lamented Mr. Adegoke Rahman, whose mother was discharged from Adeoyo Hospital.
Similarly, Mr. Samuel Biyi, an outpatient with a severe leg wound, was left unattended. “I came here for dressing, but there’s no one to help. The pain is unbearable,” he said.
In Kwara State, NANNM Chairman, Alhaji Aminu Sheu, confirmed full compliance with the national strike directive, despite improvements made by the state government in nurses’ welfare.
“We are obeying the national directive. It’s a show of solidarity, even though our state government has been supportive. This is a nationwide struggle for the dignity of Nigerian nurses,” Sheu stated.
Bayelsa State was not spared. At the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Yenagoa, patients were seen wandering helplessly as nurses vacated the wards. Liberia Progress, Chairman of NANNM at FMC Yenagoa, affirmed that there would be no skeletal services during the strike.
“We are overworked, underpaid, and unappreciated. The government discourages nurses from leaving the country, yet refuses to address the conditions that make us want to leave,” Progress said.
At the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex (OAUTHC), Ile-Ife, nurses joined the strike, bringing services to a halt. Chairman of the NANNM chapter, Lawrence Oyeniyi, said the strike was a direct consequence of government inaction.
Reacting to the escalating crisis, the Federal Government yesterday appealed to the striking nurses to reconsider their action.
Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammad Dingyadi, in a meeting with NANNM leadership in Abuja, described the strike as “unfortunate,” urging the union to embrace dialogue.
“Strike is not the solution. We are working on addressing your concerns, but we appeal to you to call off this industrial action for the sake of Nigerians in need of medical care,” Dingyadi pleaded.
However, the union appears resolute. With patients bearing the brunt of the impasse, the government is under mounting pressure to act swiftly before the strike snowballs into a full-blown health emergency.
Talks are scheduled to resume on Friday at the Federal Ministry of Health, but as of now, the strike continues, and public hospitals remain paralysed.