By Rotimi Ojomoyela – Ado-Ekiti

The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Ekiti chapter, has expressed concern over the plight of medical doctors in the employment of the state.

The body stated that the poor condition of service at primary and secondary health cadres necessitated the ongoing strike action embarked upon by the doctors in the three Specialists and 19 general hospitals as well as hundreds of primary healthcare facilities in the state.

According to the Association, the alleged neglect of the primary and secondary health system in the state has started affecting the government’s plan to ensure universal health coverage for those at the grassroots.

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In a statement made available to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti on Wednesday, by the Chairman of the Association, Dr. Tunji Omotayo, in Ado Ekiti, on Wednesday, it called on Governor Kayode Fayemi to implement the payment of hazard allowance and insurance cover for doctors working to combat COVID 19 in the state, saying the claim that the proposal, had been implemented was disheartening and misleading.

“In the last 18 months, there has been a gradual but steady decline in the number of doctors in the employment of the Hospitals’ Management Board (HMB ) to cover the three Specialists and 19 General Hospitals in the State.

“This decline reached an alarming proportion in the last six months. Within this period, the number of doctors in the employment of the HMB dropped from over 120 to just over 70. This gives an average of three doctors per hospital. Some general hospitals have only 2 doctors while a few have only one.

“Within the same period, no medical consultants (specialists) in the three specialist hospitals have decreased from 15 to five. Out of the five,  three of them are CMDs of their respective hospitals. No good health index can be expected from this unfortunate narrative”.

The NMA Chief added: “in the primary healthcare, there are only 12 doctors leaving some Local government areas without clinical cover for their PHCs. The secondary healthcare facilities are worst hit with not only external migration of its doctors to other states but also to internal migration to other hospitals”.

To arrest the drift, Omotayo urged the government to quickly implement skipping incentives, hazard allowance, rural posting allowance, appropriate placement of promoted officers, and proper insurance cover for doctors across the state.

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The NMA  boss also perceived the claim of the Ekiti State Government that it has taken a N2.5 billion Life Insurance cover of N2 million each for 500 frontlines medical personnel involved in the COVID-19 assignment as frustrating.

“The Association wishes to say that our members were neither contacted to fill any form to indicate their biodata nor asked to submit details of their next of kin. Let the government publish the names of the workers insured, the amount of premium paid for each and the amount of claim expected per person”.

Omotayo added that no qualified doctor working for the state has been paid the  COVID-19 special allowance contrary to the claim that such has been effected across the board.

“For the avoidance of doubt, only the members of staff of Federal Teaching Hospital in Ido-Ekiti has been paid special COVID-19 allowance in Ekiti state in accordance with the MOU between the Federal Government and the Joint Associations and Unions in the Health sector signed on April 21, 2020”.

Vanguard