Doctors Set to Weigh Government Response in Key Virtual Gathering

Doctors in training across Nigeria’s public hospitals will convene virtually on Saturday to assess whether officials have made headway on a series of pressing welfare issues, with the outcome likely to shape their next steps amid fears of fresh disruptions to medical services.

The nationwide body representing these professionals announced the online session in a formal alert sent to its top officials, regional representatives, and heads of local chapters earlier this week. The discussion centres on a one-month deadline handed to central authorities last month, calling for urgent fixes to longstanding problems like unpaid raises, grueling shifts, and barriers to career growth.

The alert, penned by the group’s chief administrator, stressed that attendance from all levels is essential to tackle these challenges head-on. “Your input and involvement will play a vital role in handling the current situation,” it read.

The review comes after repeated pleas to decision-makers fell on deaf ears, despite promises of action. The doctors highlighted a range of woes, from exhausting work schedules that stretch over multiple days without breaks—putting both staff and patients at risk—to the failure to settle salary boosts of 25 and 35 per cent that were due by late summer. They also decried the abrupt sacking of five colleagues at a major teaching facility in Lokoja, Kogi State, calling it an unfair blow during a time of widespread exhaustion and a surge in professionals leaving the country for better opportunities.

Other sticking points include lingering delays in salary adjustments after completing advanced qualifications, leaving many without their rightful earnings or back payments. The group pointed to the unfair exclusion of trainees from specialist bonuses, even though they handle complex cases every day, and the odd policy that bars new graduates from standard civil service benefits, delaying their pay and recognition.

They further slammed the routine downgrading of entry-level hires, which slashes their starting pay and creates ongoing shortfalls, as well as the sluggish pace of a joint agreement with broader medical bodies to update outdated pay scales—unchanged for more than 16 years—and align perks with those in related fields. For years, corrected extras have gone unpaid, trapping many in temporary roles without clear paths forward, sometimes for up to a decade.

The doctors expressed dismay over the routine undervaluing of qualifications earned through regional West African bodies, a practice not seen elsewhere in the region, and the hold-up in issuing certificates from the national postgraduate college. They warned that without a fair policy to replace those who depart, the strain on remaining workers only worsens, fuelling more exits amid crumbling facilities and outdated tools that hamper both care and training.

In a pointed critique, the group opposed moves to grant advanced roles to non-physicians, arguing it undermines quality treatment and professional norms. They also flagged the inaction on promised retirement perks outlined in a pact with wider medical leaders from late July.

Saturday’s virtual forum could signal whether the group holds firm on the deadline or opts for escalated measures, such as a coordinated pause in duties, which would hit hospital operations nationwide. The association first laid out these concerns in late September, giving officials until late October to respond meaningfully.

Such standoffs echo past tensions in the health sector, where unfulfilled commitments have repeatedly led to service interruptions, leaving patients in the lurch and deepening worries over the exodus of skilled workers.