Support our push for a better healthcare system for the country. This is the plea of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors to Nigerians
NARD made the appeal as it started a nationwide strike on Saturday saying its ongoing struggle is centred on protecting patient welfare.
It said the protest also seeks to ensure a functional healthcare system.
“Our demands are not selfish, neither are they politically motivated”, NARD President, Mohammad Usman Suleiman, stated in a statement.
He added: “They are genuine, germane, and patriotic, centred on the survival of the Nigerian health system and the well-being of every citizen who depends on it”.
The Eagle reports that the association had given notice of a nationwide indefinite strike starting from November 1, following the expiration of a 30-day ultimatum it had earlier served the Federal Government
Emphasising the need to ensure quality in service delivery, he added:
“A resident doctor who is overworked, underpaid, and mentally exhausted cannot offer optimal care to the patient who needs them most,” he noted.
He said many of the issues being raised, including workload, remuneration, staffing, arrears, and infrastructure, are issues that determine whether hospitals can provide safe, timely and effective care.
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“A nation’s health system can only be as strong as the hands that sustain it. If resident doctors are broken, under-motivated, or forced to seek survival abroad, the patients suffer most,” he said.
NARD also implored other Nigerians generally, and civil society, labour unions, religious leaders and traditional institutions to pressure government to prioritise healthcare.
“This is not a fight between resident doctors and government; it is a struggle for a functional, just, and humane healthcare system,” Suleiman declared.
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