President Muhammadu Buhari’s regime has again lamented the “acute shortage” of medical practitioners across all levels of Nigeria’s health sector.

Ekumankama Nkama, Minister of State for Health who decried the situation, blamed it on the continued “brain drain” among doctors and nurses in government hospitals. 

“This japa (emigration) syndrome is adversely affecting services in our hospitals, to the extent that some wards are closed for lack of personnel to man them,” he said.

The junior minister, who was represented by the Director, National Cancer Control Programme at the Ministry, David Atuwo, made this revelation while speaking at the inauguration of some bedded Intensive Care Unit in Lagos State. 

Nigerians have bemoaned the brain drain in the country’s health sector, while lamenting that the worrisome trend would have an adverse effect on health service delivery.

In October, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) revealed that no less than fifty doctors leave the country weekly in search of greener pastures. 

The NMA noted that the poor and unfavourable working conditions as well as issues of unpaid salary were major reasons why the practitioners were leaving the country. 

Rowland Ojinmah, National President of NMA, repeatedly challenged government to fix the state’s hospitals and facilities if they truly wanted to reverse the trend. 

Mr Ojinmah further accused the governors of not equipping the state hospitals, wondering how they want doctors to work with obsolete equipment and unavailable medical facilities.  

“The governors are sleeping; They should not be waiting for the Federal Government alone. They should fix General Hospitals in their states to take care of the health needs to the citizenry at the local levels,” he said.

However, speaking further, the junior health minister said that the Buhari regime was working hard to replace the existing medical practitioners. 

According to him, the Lagos State Teaching Hospital (LUTH) and other tertiary health facilities are now facing work overload as a result of brain drain. 

“The ministry is also working on a brain gain mechanism whereby our health professionals in the diaspora can be incentivised to come home and give paid expert service to our citizens. “This is a win-win situation for the nation and our experienced medical professionals in the diaspora,” Mr Nkama added. 

At least 7,875 Nigerian doctors are currently practising in the United Kingdom, according to the UK’s General Medical Council. The figure is expected to rise. 

The council, which is the government body that maintains the UK’s official register of medical practitioners, had also said that Nigeria currently has the third-highest number of foreign doctors working in the United Kingdom aside from India and Pakistan. 

In October, no less than 91 Nigerian-trained doctors were licensed by the medical council.