LUTH
Sequel to the indefinite strike by the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), chapter of the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) over three weeks ago, patients and relatives have expressed dissatisfaction due to delay of services delivery at the teaching hospital.
Speaking with some patients at the hospital yesterday when The Guardian visited, diverse views were gathered as most of them with their relatives nagged at the slow pace of attendance by doctors.
Some of them said though doctors are attending to patients, but they think the nurses’ strike have made things much sluggish, because they are trying to keep up in their absence.
A personnel at the accident and emergency department confirmed that doctors have been on duty all through, but the strike has affected the hospital’s workforce.
It was observed that so many patients were on long queues to see doctors at the surgery, X- ray, cardio, Guinness eye center as well as Radiotherapy and oncologist clinics with no single nurse seen around to coordinate activities at the various centers.
Though the situation was different at the community health department and paediatric clinic, as patients were scanty and personnel that attended to them where not uniformed.
A crowd of patients gathered at the Direct Observation Therapy (DOT) Centre as just few personnel were seen calling out names of patients with appointments for treatments.
A patient at the center who pleaded anonymity said she was ignorant about the nurses’ strike as she wondered why the crowd was so much. “I have an appointment today but didn’t know people would be plenty like this, people use to be plenty, but today is much,” she added.
Although attempts made to reach the Chairperson of NANNM, LUTH chapter Mrs. Yemisi Adelaja proved abortive, a member of the association who pleaded anonymity bared his mind to our correspondent, saying members were not interested in any strike from day one, “but we are being denied our rights in the organization as management were unperturbed about the problems we presented.”
He continued, even though we want the issue to be resolved, we are yet to hold another meeting with the labor ministry and LUTH management after the last two weeks ago.
He explained that most times nurses give false explanations to patients to pay extra charges to procure basic consumable and this usually results in quarrel with them. And even sometimes they use their money to purchase these items, he noted.
The NANNM member lamented that nurses are relevant in the hospital because they cater for patients in the doctors’ absence and instead of finding solutions to the issue, management is busy with propaganda and blackmail of association executives, he stressed.
Meanwhile, the President of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), LUTH chapter Dr. Akinkumi Afolabi pointed out that doctors are doing their best to see patients, as the strike hasn’t affected daily hospital turnout.
“I can tell authoritatively that all doctors are at their work post and we rendering services to our patients,” Akinkumi expressed.
He however noted that though the strike has not affected Out Patients Department (OPD) since doctors and record staffs are on duty, but the absence of nurses he said has limited the number of In Patients on admission because “we are unable to admit much as a result.”
Answering on how the strike has affected slow service rendering, Akinkumi said “even though the nurses are not around, it is on us to do more to accommodate their work burden, we are bending over backwards to ensure the system runs because we believe all stakeholder must come together to ensure the system works,” he lamented.
While the ARD LUTH president appealed to the warring nurses to suspend their strike, he urged management to negotiate well with them to yield results in the interest of the masses because “we believe we must put the masses’ interest first,” he added.
Part of the issues responsible for the strike includes non payment of newly employed nurses salary, obsolete equipment, poor staff welfare, lack of consumables, non-promotion of members, non-payment of allowances, epileptic power supply, and poor water supply, among others.