The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has said that the country retains less than 60 per cent of medical doctors that graduate in the country.
President of the association, Dr. Francis Faduyile, stated this in Abuja, yesterday, lamenting the continuous migration of Nigerian doctors to developed countries and the impact of brain drain to the Nigerian health care delivery system.
He listed poor remuneration and inadequate health facilities as the major reasons for the movement of medical doctors from the country since the 80s in search of better and conducive working environment.
Faduyile who lamented that the brain drain was affecting the patient to doctor ratio as recommended by the World Health organisation (WHO) said even pharmacists, nurses and other healthcare professionals were not spared in the mass exodus of Nigerian health professionals abroad.
“The WHO has said that for optimal healthcare to be achieved in the country, we need one doctor to 600 patients. In this country, we have 40,000 doctors taking care of 200 million people. The most skilled individuals are leaving to contribute their expertise to the economy of other countries, and Nigeria has continued to maintain poor doctor patient ratio. The massive exodus of medical doctor’s calls for concern and concerted action to address the challenges prompting doctor’s movement,” Faduyile said.
