A doctor with the Paediatric Unit of Kogi State Specialist Hospital, Lokoja, Dr. Amos Ojo on Thursday slumped while on duty at the hospital.
The doctor was said to be on ward round at noon when he suddenly collapsed due to exhaustion from too much workload and was rushed to the Accident and Emergency Ward of the hospital for resuscitation.
This is just as another doctor from the Paediatric Unit is equally said to be down and currently being attended to in his house.
This reporter learnt from health workers that pressure of work had been much on doctors following the mass exit of physicians from the hospital, as about 27 doctors were said to have left the hospital in recent time on alleged account of poor welfare.
The Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in Kogi State, Dr. Zubair recently raised concern that a total of 79 doctors had resigned from the service of the state in the last 10 months.
President of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) at the Kogi State Specialist Hospital, Dr Ashraf Abdulhakeem, who confirmed the incident, said the doctor was resuscitated and currently in stable condition.
“Actually, there are two of our doctors that are having issues. Late hours of yesterday, one of the doctor who was on call at the Paediatric Unit took ill and had to go home. Unfortunately, over the night, it escalated and we had to attend to him in his house.
“This morning (Thursday) around 12 noon, another doctor who also works in the Paediatric Unit also collapsed. These are the two cases involving our doctors between last night and today.
“Some of our doctors have left the hospital and they have not been replaced. That has now increased the pressure of work on the ones on ground.
“In the case of the doctor who was sick, he couldn’t go home because there are not enough hands. They have to stay back to see if they could work and that has resulted to what we have right now. We haven’t had enough manpower for quite sometimes now”, he said.
He called on the state government to address the wellbeing of the doctors and generality of workers in the state, adding that, “If the wellbeing of doctors are taken care of, some of these acute breakdown we see would not arise”.
On the issue of salary, Dr Ashraf said, “Salary issue is a general issue in the state. The doctors being civil servants are also part of the civil servants affected by salaries. As at September 6, we got our May salary and that is the last salary doctors have taken.”
Credits: Daily Trust
