FG, meets health workers to end strikes

The Federal Government on Saturday said it has met with health associations to end the incessant strike and rancour in the health sector.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Ali Pate disclosed at a press briefing on the ministry’s agenda for the health sector.

According to Prof Pate, human resources is an essential ingredient for producing health and improving the population’s health outcomes.

He said, “We have got amazing doctors, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory scientists in Nigeria, and people call them outside of the country all the time, but we need to make them visible so that we can be proud of them as professionals in our country.

“The human resources is the most important ingredient for producing health. We have met with stakeholders and we will work as a team, and we will work together so we can work better. The quality of what they deliver has to improve and hopefully, those who have gone away can begin to find their way back home. We will do more with our colleagues in the education ministry, the state government, and the private sector to expand the production of the health workforce that we are losing.

“On the issue of health workers’ strike is a major issue. Ultimatums, strike, and rancour. Underlying the rancour is a fundamental erosion of trust between various actors which has occurred many years. As a government, between the labour ministry and ourselves, we got right into it and we have met with four of the professional associations, and all of those meetings were very constructive because they are all Nigerians, they all share the pain, there is no health worker that will be satisfied being trained to save life and sit at home watching people die.

She stated that the government would work with all health worker associations to resolve the current disagreements, some of which have been resolved. However, she promises that other issues including National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, and the Civil Service are in discussions already. She emphasised that building trust among all stakeholders is essential to resolving the remaining issues.

She further explained, “We are listening to ourselves and we are on the side of Nigerians and we want to restore the respectability that the health profession has and we cannot do it if we are always fighting among ourselves, and the health workers will acknowledge that we should move to the phase where issues are less.”

The Minister assured that the health sector will be reformed, and health security will be prioritised.

“We will advocate strongly that Nigeria needs to prioritise spending on health. We will ensure health security, we will strengthen our public health core capabilities for self-surveillance, to be able to respond to outbreaks sooner before they get out of hand because we have done that in the past. We have done that with Ebola, Polio and we can be able to do that in our national health security.”

He added that the National Health Act will be implemented to the fullest, including the Basic Health Care Provision Fund.

(Punch)