The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), on Monday, commenced a seven-day warning strike to push for the rescue of a Kaduna-based doctor, Dr Ganiyat Popoola, who was kidnapped last December and has spent about eight months in the abductors’ den.
The strike, which held across the country, left patients stranded and the doctors shunned work.
The Minister of State for Health, Dr Tunji Alausa, on Monday, held a meeting with the leadership of NARD over the situation,
The President of NARD, Dr Dele Abdullahi, disclosed this in a telephone interview .
Abdullahi said, “We met with the minister and he said he would write the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu regarding the issue and get back to us.”
The abducted Dr Popoola works at the National Eye Hospital, Kaduna.
NARD commenced the seven-day warning strike on Monday, calling for her rescue.
Their demand comes after several official letters of request for intervention written to all major stakeholders, including security agencies; peaceful protests, and a two-week deadline for the release of their abducted colleague which had already elapsed.
Meanwhile, patients in Abuja hospitals faced significant delays in accessing healthcare services as the strike progressed. Routine procedures and consultations were delayed, leading to considerable frustration and distress among patients.
At the Federal Medical Centre, Abuja, patients and their families were forced to wait longer for essential treatments.
Sarah Adamu, who had an appointment scheduled for her diabetic condition, expressed her frustration: “I’ve been waiting for this appointment for weeks. Now, with the strike, I don’t know when I’ll be seen. It’s incredibly stressful.
“I overheard them saying they may stop collecting cards so they can attend to people they can.”
A retired civil servant, Mrs Aisha Abdul, said the strike caused significant delays in her consultation and treatment.
“I know the doctors are fighting for a just cause, but my condition requires immediate attention, especially because of my age. I hope they resolve this soon.”
A former Chairman of the Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria at the hospital, Dr Bessie Eziechila, said with NARD strike, consultants, house officers, and other healthcare workers were left to attend to patients.
At the National Hospital in Abuja, patients expressed frustration that the delays they encountered disrupted their other scheduled activities for the day.
A mother of two, Mrs Emily Thomas, said she only heard of the strike when she got to the hospital.
“Some doctors are around but the response is slow and I’m supposed to go to the office today. I didn’t plan to stay here for long at all. It’s really sad,” she decried.
Another patient, who identified herself as Maria, said her visit to the hospital ended in frustration and relief.
“After hours of delay, I was finally attended to. I hope the government addresses the situation,” she said.
Speaking, the spokesperson for the hospital, Dr. Tayo Haastrup, said the hospital was attending to patients despite the delays experienced by patients.
“I sympathise with the doctors and I pray their colleague is rescued immediately because it is not a good thing that healthcare is kidnapped.
“However, the hospital is open to patients, and we are attending to them, even though there are delays but we are attending to them. The consultants, nurses, and other healthcare workers are on the ground. No patient is being sent back,” he said.
In response to the situation, NARD defended the strike, emphasising that their actions were necessary to address long-standing issues.
“We are considering the plights of the patients, the patients are our patients and this is the oath we’ve taken. But an injury to one is an injury to all, and in a system whereby we need to keep the sanctity of the healthcare workers to do the job appropriately, how well do you think that healthcare workers will work, knowing that you have a member that has been kidnapped for months?”
“We can convince our patients that if we have our members back today, we are willing and ready to return to work and go back to what we are happy doing.”
It was a similar situation at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, as resident doctors at the hospital also shunned work.
Confirming their participation, the chairman of the association in the hospital, Dr Uzairu Abdullahi, said members joined their counterparts across the country to join the strike.
He said, “The warning strike is embarked upon by the association to press home our demands of immediate rescue of one of our members, Dr Ganiyat Popoola, from bandits.
“She has been in captivity for too long and we believe it’s high time government and security agencies took her case more seriously.”
Also in Edo State, several patients who visited the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, on Monday, were turned as residents doctors shunned the nationwide NARD strike.
A patient who simply identified herself as Felicia expressed frustration over the development, noting that she travelled several kilometres to keep an appointment with her doctor but ended up wasting her time.
She said, “I wasted my time and over N3,000 transport to and fro the hospital. I defied the early morning downpour only to be turned back.” – Punch.
