The Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, has disclosed the federal government plan to discourage brain drain especially that of physicians from the country. The Minister stated this yesterday in Abuja while inspecting a new cancer center newly launched at the National Hospital in Abuja. Ehanire said, “I have heard the challenge of doctors leaving the country. We have plans to provide better funding for our hospitals in Nigeria and make such migration unattractive,” He applauded the health workers for their commitment especially in handling the COVID-19 cases in the country, pledging that the federal government is making an effort that all our physicians within the country did not leave the country to another land because of welfare and working condition.
Earlier, the Chief Medical Director, of the Hospital Dr. Jaf Momoh, stated a similar thing when he disclosed to his colleagues that the Hospital has introduced incentives to encourage medical personnel to stay in the country.
On the new cancer centre, the minister advised the hospital management staff to spend wisely and work hard properly to maintain the facility when completed and seek alternative funding.
He commended the Hospital administrators for its timely service delivery to its patients and urged them to be on alert for a possible resurgence of coronavirus as other countries are currently experiencing it.
Ehanire warned that as schools are resuming now and traveling in and out of the country are on full scale now the health system has to be fully prepared.
In her remark, Mrs. Patricia Etteh, the Hosp[ital Board Chairman, expressed regret that though the Hospital has spent 20 years down the line operating, but a lot of challenges she said are still facing their service delivery.
She appealed to the Government on behalf of the Hospital that government should make it a priority to upgrade the hospital to be amongst the best in the country.
She noted that in the past 20 years the brain drain has always been their nightmare as the poor working condition has pushed away many of their experts.
