Former students of the Lagos State School of Midwifery (LSSM) who graduated from the institution 45 years ago gathered on Thursday for a reunion and expressed their disappointment with the current state of healthcare services in the country.
The class set (1979-1982) also known as ‘LSSM DE (Direct Entry) 4’ celebrated their 45 years anniversary in the Ikeja area of the state.
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State of healthcare services in Nigeria
Speaking with journalists during the programme, Ghaniyat Disu, the association’s president, reflected on 45 years of midwifery education in Lagos State.
The nurse, who practices abroad, expressed disappointment about her colleagues’ poor working conditions, lack of recognition and low remuneration.
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Mrs Disu recalled her visit to the Surulere Stadium and how a teenager died as a result of lack of medical equipment.
“This is nothing that I’m proud of. It’s very sad. I went to the stadium just to play, and when I got there, I saw a guy lying on the floor,” she recalled.
“I went close to the guy, and I saw the nurses there trying to resuscitate him. It’s so sad that we lost this guy, a young man.
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“I stepped in, into the ambulance, and I said, ‘where is the resuscitation equipment that they need?’ There’s none there. The only thing they have is what we call oxygen. That is the ambu bag. I don’t even think it was working. It’s so sad.”
She advocated for nurses’ involvement in policy-making to improve patients’ care. She said if nurses’ challenges can be addressed, there will be better healthcare service delivery.
On her part, the association’s founder, Rashidat Omobitan, reiterated Mrs Disu dissatisfaction with the healthcare system.
She mentioned that the current state of the healthcare system forces professionals to seek better welfare elsewhere.
Mrs Omobitan said there is a need for better pay and encouragement, saying the importance of encouragement and appreciation goes beyond monetary reward as it can motivate professionals to stay and work effectively.
“Nobody is encouraging anybody now. It is your fight for your pocket. In such a case, people go and find solace somewhere else,”she said
Reunion
Earlier in her welcome speech, Mrs Omobitan said the reunion was conceived in 2019.
“We started coming together in 2019 after contacting the majority of us with the intention of meeting as a group of the same class,” she said.
“My euphoria knows no bound as I scribble my remarks down because it is a thing of hiu for an individual to nurture an idea, implement it and witness it grow.”
Brain Drain
Nigeria has been grappling with brain drain, as thousands of Nigerian health professionals, including doctors, leave the country yearly to seek greener pastures.
“Japa” is a Nigerian slang used to describe the act of professionals leaving Nigeria to seek better opportunities and living conditions abroad.
Nigeria loses thousands of health workers annually to the Japa syndrome.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, recently revealed that the country now has only 55,000 licensed doctors as 16,000 doctors left the country in the last five years and about 17,000 have been transferred.
He also said that 67 per cent of Nigerian doctors who migrate go to practice in the United Kingdom.
1&2: The former students of LSSM at the reunion anniversary in Lagos
3: Ghaniyat Disu, President of the
LSSM DE (Direct Entry) 4’
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