Some Unions in the Federal Teaching Hospital, FTH, Lokoja has disagreed with the Association of Resident Doctors, ARD, over its allegations of crisis, high-handedness, and poor conditions of service leveled against the management headed by Dr. Alabi Olatunde Oladeji, the Chief Medical Director.
Addressing Journalists at the premises of the Teaching Hospital, Lokoja, on Monday, the Chairman of of Joint Health Staff Union, JOHESU, and Chairman of National Association of Nurses and Midwifery, NANW, Comrade Umocho John and Abdulmalik John respectively, completely dissociated themselves from the claims of the ARD and urged menbers of the public to disregard same.
Recall that Resident Doctors working at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lokoja had weekend called on President Bola Tinubu and the minister of health Ali Pate to launch an investigation on the decay of facilities and the inhuman treatment allegedly exhibited by the management of the tertiary institution
The immediate past Chairman of ARD, Dr Olushola Baoku, also revealed that the hospital before now had 315 doctors and lamented that today, the hospital can only boast of only 43 doctors because of poor working conditions.
Reacting to the claim, the opposing group noted that the allegations is a complete opposite of the situation in the hispital, emphasizing that the author did not mean well for the hospital and the inhabitants of kogi statep0. They explained that the hospital currently has 228 qualified doctors as against the 43 claimed by the ARD.
The group added that it is expected that every staff member of the hospital, especially the front line healthcare providers be seen to be of high moral standard and not be found wanting in this regard or be given opportunity to exhibit or continue to exhibit any act of misconduct.
Speaking further, they said “no one should be seen or be exempted from the above so as not to create a wrong impression in the minds of other health workers which could be a recipe for future anarchy.
“That the management of FTHL is doing her best within the available resources in respect to item 5 above and has used this to instil discipline and guarantee peace and security within the hospital community. This effort should not be frustrated as we have confidence in the capacity of the current administration under the leadership of Dr. Alabi Olatunde Oladeji.
The union officials added that any individual or group who may have disciplinary issues should sort it out at the management level as it has always been with other members of staff.
They said “we are no longer going to condole any act that would truncate the peaceful coexistence of members of staff of the hospital and the achievements recorded by this administration at the expense of interest of an individual or few. We would vehemently resist this as no one is above the public service rules.
They also called on the the Minister of Health, Ali Pate to use his good office to nip in the board this unfortunate situation, saying that it is cheaper and more effective to run the hospital from within than to run it from Abuja.
