The Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria (MDCAN) has called for urgent implementation of the approved upward review of the retirement age for Medical Doctors and other Health workers as a short term measure to bridge the Brain Drain in the Health Sector.
The president of the association, Dr Victor Makanjuola made the call, while speaking to newsmen in Abuja on Monday.
MDCAN is a group medical specialist in different field of medicine and dentistry. Consultants are those practitioners that have the highest qualifications in medical practices.
Their responsibilities includes training medical doctors, offering specialist services to patients and also conducting research in medical fields.
MDCAN has membership in government and non-government hospitals, tertiary and secondary health facilities across the country.
Makanjuola called on the Federal Government and its agencies particularly the National Council on Establishment (NCE), to expedite action on the implementation of the upward review of the retirement age for Medical Doctors and other Health workers.
The President noted that the Federal Government through the Honorable
Minister of Labour and Employment announced the approval of the upward review of the retirement age for Medical Doctors and Other Health workers some months back.
However, he stressed there had been a lot of delay in the implementation of approval, due to administrative bottleneck and unnecessary bureaucracy.
He appealed to the Government and by extension the NCE to as a matter of urgency give appropriate circular backing for the approval for its immediate implemention.
“This has become an emergency in view of mass exodus of the Consultants and other cadres of Health workers to other countries.
“This measure will ensure the Healthcare work force are not further depleted thus hampering service delivery to Nigerian patients. Furthermore training of fresh graduates and Resident Doctors will be significantly disrupted if these experienced and highly skilled hands are not retained in service,” he explained.
It will be recalls that the Federal Government on May 12 reached an agreement with stakeholders in the health sector for a new retirement age for health workers.
The new retirement age for health workers was increased from 60 to 65, while that of consultants moved from 65 is 70. (NAN)
