…To move the health sector forward
The leadership of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) and the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) have implored their members to embrace peace and disallow any act capable of bringing disharmony in the health sector.
The NMA President, Dr. Francis Faduyile, and his PSN counterpart, Pharm. Ahmed Yakasai, told their members point-blank that unless they worked as a team, communicated, shared and dialogued together, the nation’s health sector would not move forward.
The duo spoke recently during a courtesy visit by the leadership of the NMA to PSN Office in Anthony Village, Lagos, where the two leaders of the two major healthcare professional bodies in Nigeria agreed to work together in the interest of patients.
The NMA boss said, “We know that the Nigerian Health Sector cannot move forward if we continue to work in disharmony. We are here to thank the PSN president for giving direction on how we can work together. We want to continue to work in harmony. It is important for the leaders in the sector to fashion out ways of working harmoniously in the interest of patients.
“This is the most important because God called us for a divine purpose to save lives. However, over the years, there has been real distrust among us, which has affected the sector. If disharmony is allowed to continue, it will affect us the same way it affects the patients.
“I recall the impact of the various strikes in the sector; we heard of doctors who died during the exercise and, if we do not address this problem, we have questions to answer before God at the end of our lives here on earth. More importantly the ultimate loser is the practitioner, if we allow disharmony in the health
sector.
“In this fight we are all on the ground, irrespective of who is winning and, while on ground, a lot of things like the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and the National Health Act are going on behind us,”
Faduyile, however, enumerated some of the things he said were causing disharmony in the sector, and how to resolve them.
“First is the Yayale Ahmed Panel. Government should bring out the white paper report on this. We must come together and take a collective position on the report. Second is the issue of remunerations. Government said we are well paid; doctors even became susceptible to kidnappers. But when we look into our pockets, they are empty. Then, when we start fighting, people will say that we are selfish. Nevertheless, we must strive to work together and see how the issue of salary disparity will be solved,” he
cautioned.
He also identified specialisation as a problem, adding that both bodies would sit together and address the issues, as well as other issues agitating the sector.
Responding, the PSN President called for inter-professional collaboration in the sector, assuring that it was not only the way to success, but would also enable practitioners to offer quality service in the system and also serve patients better.
Yakasai noted: “We need a harmonious relationship in the health sector to improve the lot of patients’ and to offer quality care. PSN has an inter-professional committee, so NMA should come up with theirs, so that contentious areas can be amicably resolved. Let’s stop bringing politics into the healthcare system. In-fighting is killing the sector,”
warned.
