Dear readers,
As Nigeria joined the rest of the world in August to fight Mpox disease and other infectious diseases like cholera and diphtheria, doctors drew public attention to the insecurity at their workplaces, particularly the whereabouts of their colleague, Ganiyat Popoola, for more than eight months.
Ms. Popoola, a resident doctor at the National Eye Centre in Kaduna, north-west Nigeria, was abducted on 27 December 2023 along with her husband and nephew.
Although her husband was reportedly released after a ransom was paid, Ms Popoola and her nephew have remained in captivity.
Apart from organising a peaceful march by their branches across the country, medical professionals under the umbrella of the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) also embarked on a week-long warning strike to press their demand for the release of their abducted colleague.
The federal government confirmed that Ms Popoola was still alive in the custody of her captors and pledged the commitment of security agents to ensure her safe return.
However, after failing to convince doctors to call off their warning strike, the government threatened to invoke the “no work, no pay” rule, saying that walking off the job would put more lives at risk.
Kidnapping of medical students
As if to further confirm the doctors' fears, while the protests were still ongoing, the kidnappers struck again, abducting 20 medical students from the Universities of Jos and Maiduguri, who were travelling to Enugu, south-east Nigeria, to participate in the annual convention of the Federation of Catholic Medical and Dental Students.
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The students were only released after more than a week of captivity.
The incident further increased the fear of the country's doctors, who said that such incidents justified the exodus of many of their colleagues abroad.
New policy against 'japa'
Meanwhile, the government announced a new policy titled “National Policy on Health Workforce Migration” to address the workforce challenges of the health sector.
According to the Coordinating Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, the initiative aims to address “critical challenges facing the country’s health human resources, with the aim of managing, leveraging and reversing the migration of health professionals.”
Sharing the news on his X account, Mr Pate wrote: “This policy is more than a response to the ongoing exodus of health professionals; it is a comprehensive strategy to manage, harness and reverse the migration of health workers. It envisions a thriving workforce that is well supported, adequately remunerated and optimally utilized to meet the health care needs of all Nigerians.”
The minister said 67 percent of Nigerian doctors who travelled abroad are working in the UK.
She said the UK could face difficulties if the Nigerian health workers it employs decide to leave.
War against Mpox
Also in August, the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Mpox a continental and global health emergency, respectively.
The Africa CDC said the number of cases on the continent was increasing and showing a worrying upward trend. “In addition, the case fatality rate is higher than expected, ranging between 3% and 4%, and may be related to immune deficiency due to HIV,” the continental body said at the time.
Prior to the WHO and Africa CDC declaration, the Nigerian government had announced the reintroduction of health declaration forms for travellers arriving in the country. Before the form was reintroduced, Nigeria had recorded 24 cases.
According to the country’s Ministry of Health, “the form is a measure instituted to prevent the spread, monitor the possible importation of infectious diseases and assist in the control of disease outbreaks, thereby protecting the health of all Nigerians.”
Revitalization of health centers
In an effort to improve healthcare in rural areas, the Nigerian government announced in August that a total of 500 rural health centres (VHCs) had been revitalised with the hope that another 3,000 would be staffed within a year.
The Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Muyi Aina, disclosed this at a stakeholders meeting organised by the Nigeria Universal Health Care Forum in collaboration with Options Consultancy Services.
Superbacteria, fat-filled dust
Earlier this month, Newslodgeco-published a special report on the challenges that antibiotic resistance poses to many Nigerians, citing cases of neonatal sepsis in both Nigeria and Ethiopia, among other nations.
This newspaper also published an investigation exposing the importation of high-fat milk powder into the country from Europe and its consumption by unsuspecting Nigerians who mistake it for full-fat milk powder because the labels do not reveal what it actually is.
The development prompted the country's regulatory agency, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), to issue a statement defending its role but sidestepping the main concerns raised in the report.