Resident doctors at Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH) will join the ongoing strike the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), on Thursday.
They had put the strike on hold to see to the completion of the accreditation of the hospital’s Surgery Department, which is expected to end tomorrow (Wednesday).
Normal activities was going on at various wards in the hospital when our reporter visited on Tuesday with doctors and other medical personnel attending to patients.
The president of EKSUTH chapter of NARD, Dr Tunji Olaoye, said resident doctors at the hospital will down tools from Thursday because of poor welfare.
Olaoye revealed that Ekiti State government which owns the hospital is owing resident doctors six months arrears of salaries which he said has made life difficult for them.
EKSUTH NARD boss said apart from arrears of salaries owed, doctors are not being placed appropriately which is affecting their career progression.
Olaoye said: “We are joining the strike on Thursday after the ongoing accreditation exercise might have ended on Wednesday. We want to appeal to our patients to bear with us.
“The problem with us in Nigeria is that we are not sensitive to issues that affect workers. Several ultimatums were issued but no response from the government until the action began.
“When somebody is not well taken care of how do you expect him to give his best? Resident doctors are just a segment of medical workers, we have consultants on ground and other health workers.
“Most of the times, we don’t jump to strikes but the resolution depends on the government and as soon as government meets our demands, we will return to work.”
EKSUTH Chief Medical Director, Dr. Kolawole Ogundipe, said normal activities were going on at the hospital but efforts are being made to ensure that “the system does not collapse.”
Ogundipe said: “In spite of the fact that strike has commenced at the national level, it has been deferred here (at EKSUTH) because the accreditation team has arrived here and the strike is on hold.
“We will continue to engage our local NARD in negotiation to address their problems so that we don’t have significant disruption of services here.
“We should put our hands together to ensure that the system does not collapse. We atre discussing and we are going to put our local issues in the right perspective.
“This hospital is owned by the Ekiti State government and not the Federal Government and the responsibility to pay falls on the state government.”
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