The Chairman of the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives, Lagos Council Mr. Awojide Olurotimi, confirmed that the members on the association would be embarking on a three-day warning strike on Monday 10th January, 2022.
The Chairman stated at a news conference on Friday in Lagos that the strike is intended to protest poor working conditions and remuneration in the Lagos health district.
He also explained that the protest was also to communicate to the stakeholders that nurses would no longer be accessories to a health care system which endangers the health and safety of themselves and the patients they cater.
Mr. Awojide continued saying that the burden of a poorly resourced health care system will longer be borne by the nurses.
In addressing the public, he stated that the strike was with their best interest at heart, to cater for the public, their patients better, and to ensure an improved healthcare sector capable of serving them more efficiently.
He informed the public that the demands, which have already been presented to the state government, are make certain that more nurses are not frustrated to the point of leaving the service.
The association’s state executive council was reported to have held a meeting on Wednesday 29th December, 2021, in which the many challenges of nurses and the unresolved issues were assessed before the government.
He further established that these matters have been presented to the government on multiple occasions without the desirable results being realized.
“In our estimation, the state government has yet to fully come to terms with how incredibly-challenging the situation in the health sector has been for our members, especially since 2020,” Mr. Awojide said.
He commented on the continued egression of nurses to foreign countries has left health facilities understaffed.
He stated that 496 nurses abandoned the service of the State Health Service Commission between 2019 and 2021, and statutory retirement accounts for less than 15 per cent of that number.
He established that the commission has about 2,350 nurses only.
He stated that more than 200 nurses left the service of Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, and that over 80 left the Primary Healthcare board between the year 2020 and now.
“A reduced capacity in the health workforce means a reduced capacity to contain and fight new waves of pandemics and outbreaks.
“A poor retention rate only guarantees paralytic responses to new waves of pandemics within the foreseeable future,” he said.
