TRUE CONFESSION: HOW JUDASES BETRAYED THE NMA STRIKE BY SACKING US - NARD PRESIDENT

Kindly accept warm greetings from the Secretariat of NARD.

We are all aware of the events that took place during and after the last Emergency delegate meeting of the NMA on 6th August 2014 at Vines Hotel, Durumi,Abuja.

As such in the course of our internal squabbles, the Government, with the full support of some doctors (who view themselves as elders in the Profession), decided to suspend residency training programme in Nigeria!!!


How did we get to this point, right? Well, the so-called elders felt that Resident Doctors were the ones that didn't allow NMA to suspend the strike and therefore must be dealt with! The move to do this started on the 27th July after the botched NMA EDM of 26th July 2014. These " elders" had an overnight meeting at the private residence of the Minister of Health where they simply blamed NARD for the failure of NMA to suspend the strike. The conclusion therefrom was taken to the Government.

Eighteen days after this meeting of 'elders" and eight days after the last EDM of 6th August 2014, the FG unilaterally decided to suspend the Residency Training Programme in all Teaching Hospitals and Sack all Resident Doctors.

Subsequently, we discussed as the NOC of NARD on Thursday 14th August and decided that the best bet is to go through the structures of the NMA to resolve this issue as the root cause of it lies within the NMA. We took this approach because of the possibility of another entrapment should we go separately. We collectively (with the NMA) decided that the Suspension and Sack must be reversed.

A Press conference took place on Friday 15th August 2014 and a discussion with the Lawyers took place. A motion for an exparte injunction was sought to prevent FG, FMoH and CMDs/MDs from executing the Circular on suspension of RTP.

We left Abuja on Friday 15th August 2014 only to be called from the NMA secretariat on Saturday 16th August that the Senate President has invited a delegation of NMA/NARD for a mediation talk at his residence on Sunday 17th August. This channel was opened up through the President of MWAN, Dr (Mrs) Valerie Obot.
Dr White Man: delegation of NMA/NARD for a mediation talk at his residence on Sunday 17th August. This channel was opened up through the President of MWAN, Dr (Mrs) Valerie Obot.

We met the Senate President at about 8:30 pm in his Residence and had a discussion that centred on: Suspension of Residency Training, Relativity, Skipping, Hazard Allowance, Circular on the entry steps for HOs, Circular on Consultancy Status and items for Continuation of Negotiation including- Funding of Residency Training, Surgeon-General ( Chief Medical Adviser of the Federation), Reversal of CBN Circular amongst many.

Regarding the suspension of Residency Training, he viewed the action by FG as uncalled for and counter-productive. He On Relativity, we informed him that the EDM requested for implementation with or without payment of the arrears. On Skipping we told him of the genesis and background agreements and disagreements while we also informed of the justification of the review for Hazard Allowance using Ebola as a reference. For the outstanding issues with circulars, he castigated NMA for not doing the needful in terms of PR in the MDAs to get workers to do its bidding. On Surgeon-General, he advised that we may have to change terminology to beat the opposition. On Funding of Residency Training, he opined that it requires a lot of lobby to secure it as it is not salary-related and therefore not an issue for strike. He promised to discuss with the President on Monday 18th August and call us back for further discussion on 19th August 2014.
Dr White Man: The review discussion took place on Tuesday 19th August 2014 at the Residence of the Senate President. He reported back that the President and Commander-in-Chief was visibly angry when they met and that told him that he felt slighted by the NMA. His grouse was that he met the NMA twice and appealed for a suspension of the strike but both times he was disappointed. He further stated that he was informed severally that the NMA was desirous of suspending the strike but it was NARD that was holding NMA hostage.He further informed us that the President has been told that despite Obembe's determination to end the strike to the extent of resigning, NARD members instigated him to come back and continue provided he is gonna lead the strike. It was further said that opposition political parties, APC to be specific was using both the NARD and NMA Presidents to smear the ruling PDP party. Thus, the President said that though the sack is temporary, he will not withdraw the directive until Drs suspend their strike because there is no way one can guarantee Nigerian Doctors. He concluded on this issue by telling the Senate President that if the Doctors suspend the strike, the Circular will be withdrawn.

On Relativity, the President was said to have told Sen David Mark that there is no extra pool of funds to draw from and pay any arrears. Thus, only the two months already released to hospitals is to be paid while the 10-months' arrears shall be paid once the 2015 budget is passed. On Skipping, he said that the Minister of Health stated that he had been pleading with us to allow for the conclusion of the appeal by the FMoH. We then informed the Senate President that, the FG had signed agreements containing Skipping twice and the majority of Doctors have received letters of skipping while a few hospitals have paid. He later confirmed, and informed us that the new Head of Civil Service just took over on Monday and needs time for debriefing before he collaborates with the National Salaries and Wages Commission and sorts out the issue including the financial implication.
[21/08 6:39 AM] Dr White Man: and Wages Commission and sorts out the issue including the financial implication.

On Hazard Allowance, he agreed that an improvement is desirable but let us agree on a percentage. This was then pegged at 20% Basic Salary per month for Consultants and above while 30% of Basic Salary per month for Senior Registrars and below. However, this is to be completed as a component of the issues under continuation of Negotiation. (Collective Bargaining Agreement). For the circulars on HOs entry steps and Consultancy status, they will be corrected to reflect the viewpoints of NMA.

On Funding of Residency Training, he stated that we need to spare time for advocacy to people like him to get it properly done until it becomes a norm in the budget. On the other elements to be discussed under continuation of Negotiation, he stated that FMoH has told him that their team is ready and that as soon as the impasse is over, the discussions will start so as to finish before the 2015 budget is passed. He excused himself to see guests while we itemize the issues with his SSA into categories of those requiring payment, correction of Circulars a=or reassurance.

The Senate President concluded by pleading for the suspension of the strike based on the need NMA still has for political goodwill of Mr President as well as the Nigerian Masses. We departed from his residence around midnight.
Dr White Man: So, we discussed extensively and having waited for a good response from MDCAN that is obviously not forthcoming; an exparte injunction from NICN court Abuja, that has refused to materialize because the judge has consistently and conveniently refused to be available for hearing, we are of the opinion that holding onto the last vestiges of goodwill from the Senate President may just be the way out. However, this requires that we suspend the strike, and immediately the FG will reinstate all Resident Doctors.

For NARD, we ask ourselves certain pertinent questions: What is the underlying cause of this problem and what are the effects-seen and unseen? Certainly, the internal disaffection from the fall outs of the failed EDM(s) of NMA is an integral reason. Furthermore, this made it easy for the Judases within us to get emboldened to create the background for the latest assault on Medicine in Nigeria. The immediate backbone would have been MDCAN but alas it is comatose.

This is the journey over the past few days and weeks.

Kindly ruminate and understand why our concurrence for the suspension of the strike remains a plausible way out of this logjam!!!

Thank you

Dr Jibril Abdullahi
President

Ebola: Mark appeals to NMA to end strike

enate President, David Mark, on Thursday, appealed to the striking doctors under the aegis of the Nigeria Medical Association to rise up to the current national emergency by calling off their ongoing industrial action.

Mark who stated this in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Paul Mumeh, in Abuja, also directed the Senate Committee on Health to collaborate with the relevant agencies to prevent the spread of the deadly Ebola disease.

He said, “The striking medical doctors should see the outbreak of the Ebola virus disease in the country as a national emergency that necessitate the immediate suspension of their strike and return to duty.”

He asked the doctors to be patriotic enough to put aside whatever grievances or misgivings they had and return to their duty posts.

He noted that failure to hearken to this national call, was akin to sentencing the citizens of Nigeria to untimely deaths.

He also pointed out that the continued strike of the doctors will be a disservice to humanity and a total betrayal of their noble and revered profession .

He reminded them of the Hippocratic oath they swore to on graduation that their primary duty was to save lives, far above other considerations.

He said part of the modern Hippocratic oath written in 1964 by Academic Dean of the school of medicine at the Tufts University, was that doctors would prevent diseases whenever they can, for prevention is preferable to cure.

Mark said, “For the avoidance of doubts, nobody is opposed to the Doctors’ demands. They are genuine and I think they are reasonable.

“But What is paramount now is that there is an emergency that demands extra-ordinary measures to tackle.”

He expressed optimism that the Federal Government would do the needful to address their grievances.

Mark appreciated the huge challenges faced by the doctors and other healthcare providers and urged them to rigidly apply universal precautions while attending to their patients.

He also enjoined all citizens to constantly practise good personal hygiene in their homes, offices, shops, schools and other work places to halt the possible spread of the disease.

Mark, according to the statement, has equally directed the Senate Committee on Health to collaborate with the Federal Ministry of Health and other health institutions in the fight against the Ebola virus disease.

He said the National Assembly was taking the Ebola virus disease case as a national emergency and has in the meantime embarked on sensitisation programme on the matter.

Source: Punch

Nurses fault doctors strike

Nurses in the country have condemned the ongoing strke by the medical doctors.They urged government to stop all doctors on it’s pay roll from establishing private clinics.

Besides, the nurses under tbe umbrella of National Association of Nigeria Nurses andMidwives (NANNM) also condemned what it described unethical behavior or practice of Medical Practitioners whereby in-patients are compulsory discharged against their wish whenever Nigeria Medical Association calls for industrial action.

The Nurses in a statement issued on Sunday and made available to newsmen inAbuja expressed displeasure over the strike, stressing that NMA always wants to make it appear that the patients left the hospital because doctors are on strike.

The statement which was signed by Mr. Yusuf-Badmus, General Secretary, NANNM stressed that, “the public at large must be made to know that most in-patients are in the hospital for comprehensive healthcare (physical and psychological) and are being taken care of by the nurses and other health professionals, except those that have been booked for surgical procedures or surgical operation.”

The medical practitioner therefore, has no moral nor ethical justification to compulsorily force them (in-patients) out of the hospital to make the hospital empty because doctors are on strike.”

He explained further that “Ante natal care, deliveries and post natal cares are handled by skilled nurses or midwives even where we have or do not have medical practitioners. Most hospitals or health facilities in Nigeria are run today without medical practitioners especially in the ruralor semi urban areas where the medical practitioners have distained and refused towork.“



The public are therefore encouraged to attend and patronize the hospitals because other health professionals such as skill midwives, the accident and emergency (A& E) Nurses, intensive care nurses, orthopedic nurses pediatric nurses etc. including the medical laboratory scientists, medical record officers, the radiographers the physiotherapists and pharmacists etc are on ground to attend to their health needs.”

He further stated, “All government health workers should have a unified salary scales. Difference should be entry/exit points and professional/peculiar allowances of the different cadres of workers. This will go a long way in checking.and prevent unhealthy rivalry and end to the incessant strike action, that leaves the innocent patient to suffer.”

Source: The Nation

GIVE US CARS OR WE STRIKE; PHYSICIANS THREATEN FG; AS THEY DRAW BATTLE LINE WITH CBN by Fejiro Oliver

For daring to give directives in the health sector that clearance must be obtained from the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) for product certification before the importation of In-Vitro Diagnostics into the country, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has threatened to go to battle with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) who issued the order.

A section of the circular by the CBN with ref No: TED/FEM/FPC/ GEN/01/001, dated April 24 2014 and signed by its Acting Director (Trade and Exchange Department),Mr. J.O. Ajewole reads, “Documentation in respect of imports of IVDs shall include Certificate of Registration of the importer and product certificate issued by the MLSCN. Bonafide importers who intend to import IVDs into Nigeria are therefore advised to apply to the MLSCN for registration.”

The new NMA National President, Dr. Kayode Obembe warned the CBN to revoke the order or the nation will pay for it. This was made known during his maiden press briefing on Tuesday in Abuja after he was elected in Benin, crying that the MLSCN may have gone to lobby CBN to make such demand. He asked the CBN to withdraw the circular as there are already established bodies for such.

“Already, we have NAFDAC and SON which have been established to enforce standards. If you go on to proliferate other bodies, it will be like another import license scandal and it is not going to augur well for the healthcare delivery system in Nigeria. Let the organizations which have been charged with these responsibilities continue and we don’t need any more. That is why the CBN has to withdraw this circular with immediate effect. But if they insist, we will use every means to resist them because it is unnecessary. So if I want to do ultra scan, I must first of all go to the MLSCN to get clearance. What we are trying to do is to remove allobstacles as we have in civilized countries.”


The association promised to use every legitimate means to see that the action of the CBN do not see the light of the day; noting that such amounts to causing trouble where there is none.

Mr Obembe charged physicians to be on duty as other Medical and Health workers plan to go on strike. They also demanded from the government that their members should be given cars and ambulances, to enable them cope with emergency situations as it obtains in other developed countries especially in the US.

“All Doctors in Nigeria should be given cars and medical ambulances because wherever they are all Doctors would be able to tackle emergencies in line with global trends, especially in the United States of America. We are therefore ready to take our rightful positions in tackling emergencies. Even the kidnappers when they are sick, they go to hospitals. In order to guarantee peace, progress and harmony in the health sector, the government should tackle these naughty problems headlong without unnecessary procrastination or prevarication”, he said

Other demands made by NMA is the speedy passage of the controversial National Health Bill (NHB), Security for their members, placement of fresh medical students on Housemanship as well as overseas residency training for them.

A top medical consultant who prefers anonymity who spoke to us wondered why cars should be a priority for Nigerian doctors when such will not add value to the patients’ lives. “All of us who are inthe clinical line can buy a car for personal use, so why tell government to buy cars. Will it also get to doctors in the private hospitals? Will Nurses and Pharmacists also get these cars? I believe that Dr Obembe is not speaking for our association on this matter but himself”, he said

A staffer with the CBN confided in this newspaper that the circular is in line with global standard and no amount of blackmail can make them withdraw it. “When did they become lab scientist that they now import diagnostics equipments and why won’t they get permission from the appropriate association if they must import”, the senior staff told us.

Source: Secret Reporters