Experts Advocate Better Funding, Pay For Health Workers

To address the growing exodus of healthcare workers in Nigeria and enhance their professionalism, governments at all levels must prioritise investing in better welfare and remuneration.

This formed the basis of discussion of health and legal experts at a forum held recently in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital.

Nigeria’s healthcare system faces numerous challenges that hinder its ability to provide quality healthcare services to its citizens.

It is against this backdrop that medical experts at this forum believe that these challenges have led to a rise in medicolegal issues among healthcare workers and patients in Nigeria.

The event, organized by the Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria, aims to suggest solutions to the issues that lead to litigations between patients and healthcare workers.

Meanwhile, the keynote speaker identified an increase in cases of negligence, safety concerns, workplace violence, brain drain, and other factors as catalysts for the growing concern of litigations between patients and healthcare workers.

In the case of brain drain, the legal expert believes most cases of litigation are caused by the shortage of health workers, which must be addressed through improvement in their welfare.

Stakeholders at this forum believe that to stem the tide of medicolegal issues, Nigeria’s healthcare sector urgently requires systemic reforms, to enhance healthcare delivery and foster a more harmonious relationship between healthcare workers and patients.