Health
17 hospitals record assaults on doctors – NARD
The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors has decried the rising wave of assaults on medical personnel in hospitals across the country.
Findings by Saturday PUNCH revealed that at least 17 major tertiary health institutions across the country recorded cases of attacks on doctors within the past year.
The affected facilities include the University College Hospital, Ibadan; Federal Medical Centre, Owo; Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu; Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital, Awka; Delta State University Teaching Hospital, Oghara; General Hospital, Warri; Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospitals, Abakaliki; and FMC Jabi, Abuja.
Others are the Kwara State University Teaching Hospital, Ilorin; Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto; University of Uyo Teaching Hospital; University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu; National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu; FMC Jalingo; National Hospital, Abuja; and Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital, Bauchi.
The development has renewed concerns among medical professionals, who said attacks on doctors had become frequent, with perpetrators often being patients’ relatives, aggrieved family members, or individuals dissatisfied with treatment outcomes.
NARD warned that repeated attacks on healthcare workers were becoming a serious threat to the country’s health system, stressing that doctors could no longer continue to work under the constant fear of assault.
Speaking with Saturday PUNCH, the National President of NARD, Dr Muhammed Suleiman, described the development as “intolerable, unacceptable, and dangerous to the survival of Nigeria’s healthcare system,” warning that the situation was creating fear among doctors and worsening workforce shortages as many consider leaving the country.
Suleiman said NARD would no longer fold its arms while doctors are treated like criminals in the institutions where they serve humanity.
He further stated that recent threats issued against one of its members were being treated with utmost seriousness, insisting that any harm, direct or indirect, inflicted on the doctor must be traced to the identified assailants and all connected parties.
“NARD also places on record that the threats issued against our member are taken with utmost seriousness. Should any harm come to him, directly or indirectly, the identified assailants and all parties connected to these threats must be held fully responsible,” he added.
The association warned that continued failure by the government and relevant stakeholders to address the growing wave of assaults on doctors could trigger widespread industrial action across the country.
Reiterating his position, Suleiman stressed that the safety of healthcare workers must be treated as a non-negotiable priority by authorities at all levels.
“Government at all levels must understand that the safety of healthcare workers is non-negotiable. Hospitals must not become theatres of violence, intimidation, and lawlessness. An injury to one doctor is an injury to all,” he added.
Among recent incidents, doctors at the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, Ondo State, recorded repeated assaults on medical staff, while the University College Hospital, Ibadan, also witnessed attacks on emergency unit personnel following the death of a patient.
Similar cases were reported at Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Sagamu; Delta State University Teaching Hospital, Oghara; Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital, Awka; and other facilities across the country, often triggering strikes, protests, or withdrawal of services by resident doctors.
At the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, NARD had previously demanded improved security after two separate attacks on doctors within the institution in the same year.
At the University College Hospital, Ibadan, the association condemned an assault on emergency staff following a patient’s death, describing it as unacceptable and dangerous to clinical practice.
In Awka, the South-East caucus of NARD also condemned an attack on a resident doctor during a mass casualty emergency, warning of possible industrial action if adequate protection was not guaranteed.
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