The Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria has officially commenced a seven-day warning strike on Monday.
This action is expected to severely disrupt medical services across Nigeria, with operations at 83 health facilities and 64 medical schools being affected, according to the MDCAN National President, Prof Muhammad Muhammad.
The MDCAN’s decision to initiate this strike follows a series of unresolved demands, despite the association issuing a 21-day ultimatum earlier in October, warning the Federal Government and relevant stakeholders about the consequences of failing to address their concerns. The warning strike is slated to last until Sunday, November 24, 2024.
In an exclusive interview, Prof Muhammad outlined that all universities, both federal and state-owned, with medical schools, as well as numerous hospitals across the country, will be impacted.
These include all teaching hospitals, federal medical centers, state teaching and specialist hospitals, which together form the core of Nigeria’s healthcare system. MDCAN represents 83 chapters, which encompass 83 such facilities.
Additionally, the strike will affect 42 fully accredited medical schools, 11 partially accredited ones, 9 fully accredited dental schools, and 2 partially accredited dental schools.
The MDCAN’s communique, issued last Thursday, highlights several unresolved issues that prompted the warning strike.
One of the major grievances is the exclusion of medical and dental lecturers from the appointment process for the Vice-Chancellor of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.
Despite the government’s clear directive to halt the process, MDCAN claims the Governing Council Chairman of the university has acted in defiance of this directive, appointing individuals to the position in violation of the established rules.
The association has also expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s failure to address several key demands.
These include the harmonisation of the retirement age for medical and dental consultants to 70 years to combat the increasing migration of healthcare professionals, and the implementation of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure for medical lecturers.
According to MDCAN, the current system results in significant shortfalls in emoluments, pension contributions, and entry-level salaries for these professionals.
“We have 83 MDCAN chapters representing 83 teaching hospitals, Federal Medical Centres and specialist hospitals,” Prof Muhammad explained. “All the universities owned by the federal and state governments with medical schools are going to be affected. All the federal and state tertiary health institutions that have our members will also be impacted.”
MDCAN’s communique, signed by Prof Muhammad and Secretary-General Prof Daiyabu Ibrahim, also expresses deep concern about the lack of accountability and the government’s failure to act on previous agreements.
The communique stresses the “reckless and utter disregard for due process” in the handling of the Vice-Chancellor appointment at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, and the lack of action to address critical healthcare and educational staffing shortages.
“The failure of the government to harmonise the retirement age of Medical Consultants to 70 years is exacerbating the current shortfall of critical manpower for training, research, and healthcare services in the country,” the communique read.
The MDCAN also insists that the government immediately relieve the Chairman of the Governing Council of Nnamdi Azikiwe University of his position, accusing him of insubordination and demanding adherence to the Ministry of Education’s directive.
Furthermore, the association is calling for an all-inclusive advertisement for the Vice-Chancellor position, which they suggest should follow the model recently issued by Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
MDCAN has also listed the immediate implementation of a range of financial demands, including the harmonization of the payment of emoluments for medical and dental consultants, the payment of clinical duty allowance arrears for 2023 and 2024, as well as the settlement of 2023 CONMESS arrears at 25% for clinical lecturers and 35% for other medical staff.
“The MDCAN NEC will reconvene on Sunday, November 24, 2024, at 8:00 pm to reassess the situation and determine the next course of action,” Prof Muhammad concluded.
As the strike takes effect, both the medical and educational sectors are bracing for a challenging week ahead.
The government is now under increased pressure to address these concerns to avoid further disruption in the country’s already strained healthcare system.
