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The Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Lokoja said that it had fully deployed 73 consultants in the Centre to care for patients to minimize the impact of strike embarked upon by resident doctors.
Dr Jones Taiwo, the Head of Clinical Services (HCS) of the Centre said on Friday in Lokoja that the services of the consultants were being complemented by 32 intern doctors and 33 NYSC doctors.
He told newsmen that pharmacists, dentists, radiologists and other categories of health workers have also been fully mobilized to fill the gap created by the striking resident doctors.
“This has really helped us a lot in keeping the services going on smoothly with minimal strike effects.
” It is only the residents doctors that are on strike, others are working and we are attending to at least 85 per cent of patients that are trooping to the Centre.
“There is a directive from the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria that one year of the interns should not be interrupted, and this has been strictly obeyed which has also helped us in effective service delivery,” he explained.
The Head of the clinical services said that normal laboratory tests were conducted while doctors had been carrying out emergency and scheduled surgeries.
According to Taiwo, the Labour Ward that is always on the receiving end anytime resident doctors are on strike are now being manned by consultants.
He said that the management of the hospital had no problem with the resident doctors in the hospital being on strike, saying that they were only complying with a directive of their national body.
Attempts to speak with Dr Shola Baoku, the Chairman of the Kogi State chapter of the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) proved abortive as he was said to be in Abuja.
It was gathered that Baoku is a member of NARD team negotiating with the Federal Government on the ongoing.
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