NMA Urges National Assembly to Address Hospital Inadequacies Before Punishing Health Workers

In a statement made available to Daily Post Nigeria, the President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Prof. Afekhide Ernest Omoti, expressed concerns over a legislative proposal by the National Assembly that aims to impose fines and imprisonment on healthcare workers who decline to attend to emergency patients. According to Omoti, the NMA strongly opposes this proposal and urges the National Assembly to focus on improving healthcare facilities instead.

The NMA president emphasized that healthcare workers are already overworked and underpaid, and subjecting them to penalties without addressing the root causes of their reluctance to attend to emergency patients would only exacerbate the situation. He called on the National Assembly to prioritize the needs of patients and healthcare workers by ensuring that hospitals are adequately equipped and staffed to handle emergencies effectively.

This stance by the NMA comes as a response to the recent spike in reports of healthcare workers refusing to attend to emergency patients, which has been a subject of public outcry and criticism. The association has argued that such incidents are often a result of inadequate infrastructure and resources, rather than the negligence of healthcare workers.

This story highlights the ongoing struggle for improved healthcare infrastructure in Nigeria and the need for collaborative efforts between the government, healthcare professionals, and lawmakers to ensure that patients receive the care they need and deserve.