Bayelsa State governor, Senator Douye Diri, on Monday, signed the Medical Residency Training Law 2024, making it the first state in Nigeria with such beneficial law for resident doctors.
The Executive Bill sent to the Bayelsa State House of Assembly provides for funding support for resident doctors to specialise in specific fields.
The governor commended the House of Assembly for giving the bill accelerated hearing, considering its importance.
He said his administration had always prioritised the welfare of its workers and will continue to provide the enabling environment for resident doctors whose profession is threatened by brain drain.
The Bayelsa State helmsman, who expressed delight that the state was the first with such a law, promised that every aspect of the new legislation will be implemented.
He said: “I know this is one area that our unionists have been very interested in. Every meeting they have had with me, this issue was tabled and I promised to do something about it.
“I am happy that this went as an Executive Bill to the state Assembly and the Assembly expeditiously attended to it, knowing its importance.
“This government prioritises the welfare of our workers. If our workers in the medical profession see this law as something that must be attended to and we agreed with them for the benefit of the larger society, today we have put pen to paper and it is now a law,” Governor Diri said.
He appreciated the medical unions for demanding for what would enhance the status of resident doctors and the whole of society in the state.
In his remarks, the Majority Leader of the Assembly, Monday Obolo-Bubou, said the legislature saw the importance of the bill as a legislation that will boost the performance of health workers in the state and gave it speedy passage.
Obolo-Bubou explained that the law will build the capacity of resident doctors that embark on regular training to equip their manpower for better service delivery to patients.
Chairman, House Committee on Health, Dr. Oyinke Godbless, told Government House correspondents that by the law, more surgeons, anaesthetists and specialist doctors would emerge as a result of the funding the state government would channel into the medical sector.