Janet Ogundepo
The Chief Medical Director of the Lagos State Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, Prof Adetokunbo Fabamwo, says doctors in the facility were not on strike and will be at their duty posts attending to medical and surgical emergency cases.
The CMD’s comment is coming on the heels of the ongoing indefinite strike embarked on by the Nigeria Labour Congress.
On Friday, organised labour members announced an indefinite nationwide strike in response to the Federal Government’s refusal to increase the proposed minimum wage from N60,000.
The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joe Ajaero stated that the strike would commence at midnight on Sunday, June 2, 2024.
PUNCH Healthwise had earlier reported that some healthcare workers under the aegis of the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives and the Joint Health Sector Unions on Monday rendered skeletal services in Abuja hospitals.
Fabamwo, who spoke to PUNCH Healthwise through the Director of Clinical Services and Training, Prof Adebowale Adekoya, confirmed that the strike impacted the hospital’s services and as a result, only patients with medical and surgical emergencies were being attended to.
He said clinics would remain closed until the industrial action is over but that doctors manning them would be available to attend to emergency cases.
Fabamwo said, “To a large extent, it has had a strong impact on services but we must put it on record that a large number of people working in these premises are not members of NLC-TUC and I need to explain what that means.
“Here, we have different bodies and associations. There is one called Nigerian Medical Association and we have well over 750 of their members working in this compound they are not members of TUC or NLC, and that has been an age-long factor.
“So, this means that those people, as we speak, are at their duty posts, discharging their services.”
The LASUTH CMD revealed that two life-threatening cases were promptly attended to by the doctors while the NLC members were around to enforce the strike action.
He noted that the presence of the doctors also saved the life of a pregnant woman who had been waiting for a child for five years and was in urgent need of a Caesarian section.
Fabanwo said the CS was successful, adding, “It’s also for the records that today, we coincidentally had life-challenging cases to manage. We had a case of a stab to the abdomen, where we had to quickly go in and rescue the patient.
“As I speak with you now, doctors are in the theatre battling to save that person’s life. So that would have been one life lost if doctors decided to say gates were locked; they would have turned back. But no, they didn’t turn back and leave. They waited for us to appeal to those who came to enforce the strike. We got the gates opened.
“Again, we had in our Ayinke maternity, case of a precious baby; someone who had an infertility challenge for five years and needed to deliver the baby today.
“So if we had said, let’s go the way of TUC/NLC, it would have been a disastrous story for that family. We just completed the surgery right now, just about 10 minutes ago, and brought joy to that family,” he stated.
NLC locks gate
Meanwhile, the Organised Labour, our correspondent observed, laid siege at LASUTH’s main gate on Monday to enforce the strike.
Pedestrians and vehicles were restricted from gaining entry into the premises for more than two hours, however, the NLC members eventually opened the gate after the hospital management’s intervention.
Our correspondent, who could not access the facility through the main gate watched as patients’ relatives who came in their cars were asked to leave by some security operatives
Several explanations from one of the patient’s relatives that they have an unconscious patient in the ICU, fell on deaf ears as they were denied entry.
Our correspondent, however, noted that pedestrians were only allowed access after being quizzed by the NLC officials at the gate.
Meanwhile, pedestrians who identified themselves as doctors and staff of the hospital were denied entry and asked to go back home.
A nursing assistant, identified only as Omoyemi, lamented that despite identifying herself as a staff, she was not allowed in.
According to her, she was able to gain entry into the hospital premises through a gate often by medical students.
“I work here and I was telling the man at the gate that I am a staff and he said that for the fact that I am a staff, that I should go back home. Even a female doctor who was stranded outside was asked to go back home. She explained that her car and bags were inside, yet they asked her to turn back. The lady was only allowed in after some people at the gate shouted at the man,” she said.
PUNCH Healthwise reports that two female doctors, whose names could not be ascertained, were also denied entry into the hospital despite showing the NLC officials their identification car.
PUNCH Healthwise gathered it took the intervention of the hospital management before they could be allowed into the premises.
Male nurse slapped
At the MRC Building, also called the administrative building, PUNCH Healthwise noticed that some NLC officials putting on union’s branded T-shirts, tops and reflective jackets, were making frantic efforts to ensure administrative officers exited the building.
Holding canes and sticks, they rang bells at intervals.
As this continued, the CMD stepped out to speak with the NLC officials and after a few minutes, they left the area and headed for the main entrance.
A walk through LASUTH premises showed that departments, such as Family Medicine and the Eye Clinic, were empty.
Only the hospital security personnel were seen seated at the entrances.
Meanwhile, Fabamwo condemned the NLC members for locking the gate, describing the action as wrong.
He said, “I think the mission was to come and drive away their members from work but in essence, they also admitted that they’ve obstructed the duties of those who are not their members.”
The LASUTH CMD noted that after the management addressed the union officials, they saw reasons with him, opened the gates and left the premises.
“We can’t lock our gates against people brought in on an emergency. We’ve been labour leaders, union leaders ourselves and we have gone on strike, total strike, but even then, we never locked government gates.
“You walk away, you don’t lock government gates; you don’t destroy properties. So that has been addressed,” he added.
He further noted that administrative staff, who are members of the NLC have been told that they were free to stay away from their offices.
The don, while assuring that emergency cases would be promptly attended to by the doctors, said, “The impact of the strike will be felt from the gate to the bedside by everybody.”
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