The protesting doctors
Residents doctors at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba, on Wednesday protested against the management of the hospital to press home their demands, Punch Metro reports.
The doctors on Wednesday during their protest carried placards round the hospital.
The President, Association of Resident Doctors, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba, Dr. Kayode Makinde, said it was painful that some of the resident doctors in the hospital have not been paid for five months.
“How do you explain to your family and loved ones that as a doctor, who works in LUTH, who provide care to the sick and the vulnerable that your life can be cut short even in the line of duty due to inadequate security. Isn’t this a basic requirement to function?
“How does one explain a situation where a house officer, the most vulnerable of the doctors are being owed salaries, some up to five months?”
Makinde also lamented the shortage of medical doctors of all cadres, saying that the last time LUTH recruited doctors was in 2016.
He added that when the association tried to discuss their grievances with the management, the management allegedly took to spying and other covert surveillance moves, and issuing queries based on the outcomes of such activities.
Makinde said the union, on Wednesday, began a two-day warning strike after which they will take a decision if their demands were still unmet.
Reacting, the Chief Medical Director, Prof Chris Bode, who spoke through the Chairman, Medical Adversary Committee, Prof Olufemi Fasanmade, said the union members decided to go on strike because some of its members got queries from the management.
He said, “The doctors that were issued queries based on their conduct have responded, but the ARD want the management to withdraw the queries and apologise, which is not possible. They have decided to lump up other issues, but I can tell you that the reason for their agitation was because of the queries issued to some of its members.”
Fasanmade said it was false that the management was spying on the WhatsApp platform of the union.
He also said that the allegation that some of the members were owed up to five months salaries was false.
Fasanmade said the rule of ‘no work, no pay’ will be enforced on the doctors for the period they were on strike as they had no basis to embark on the strike.
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