theuniqueone:

I don't want to glorify your uncouth rantings. I will only wait for you to join us in the trauma emergency unit after your rantings online. An Educated fool who feels that he could massage his over bloated inferiority complex by calling his Superior an illiterate hiding under so called international best practices. Fool come and commence physiotherapy on a poly traumatised patient, unconscious with femoral fracture. A physiotherapist advising a doctor on wound care when plastic surgeons have not gone extinct. Johesu version of health care is the 8th Wonder of the world

Anyway, Mr silence is the best answer to a fool. You are mentally Ill, Just go for a psych exam maybe your delusion will be managed. Pause, Take time and read my comment below about the international best practices as directed by WHO. Try and understand if you can. Otherwise, you are a liability to those who you send to school

the unique one:

JOHESU AND NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT VS NMA HEALTH BATTLE: THIS IS THE CONCLUSION OF THE MATTER
By Fejiro Oliver
The equal right of all citizens to health, education, work, food, security, culture, science, and wellbeing – that is, the same rights we proclaimed when we began our struggle, in addition to those which emerge from our dreams of justice and equality for all inhabitants of our world – is what I wish for all. Fidel Castro
This is a long write-up for intellectuals who can research and not those who dwell in shallow arguments.
For two years, I purposely stayed away from writing as an individual on issues that bothered about the health sector in Nigeria, to enable me research on the true international best practices and come out with an informed and none bias position. Apart from education and defense, the most important aspect of a country is its health sector. Sadly enough, the sector in Nigeria has been bedeviled by animosity and fierce battle between the two prominent groups, namely; Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) and the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).
JOHESU consists of all workers in the hospitals apart from Physicians and Dentists who make up NMA. I have decided to skip the word ‘doctor’ for a reason, which will be explained later. Nigeria is currently shut down with death toll rising every twenty four hours since JOHESU embarked on their strike last week. Despite the Federal Government refusal to pay them April salaries, they are bent on not going to work, until their demands are met. The argument from both sides is reasonable, depending on the prism through which one views it.
JOHESU is insisting that the FG honors all the agreement it reached with them, especially as it has to do with allowing their members to reach consultancy level, upward review of the CONHESS salary as agreed with FG, retirement age at 65 and few others. NMA on the other hand believes that the increment in salary for JOHESU will place them at par. They have also fought some JOHESU professionals from attaining consultancy status as well as using the prefix ‘Doctor’ before their name.
First of all, who is a Doctor? The word was never a medical word from origin. It is a Latin word from 1300, which means “Church father,” from Old French doctour, from Medieval Latin doctor “religious teacher, adviser, scholar,” in classical Latin “teacher,” agent noun from docere “to show, teach, cause to know,” originally “make to appear right,” causative of decere “be seemly, fitting,” from PIE root dek- “to take, accept”, as defined by etymonline. When the art of healing came into serious practice, the word ‘Doctor’ was used to replace the word ‘leech’, which they were initially called.
It therefore brings us to the argument on those entitled to use the suffix ‘Dr’ before their names in the health sector. First of all, it’s an acceptable fact that no one went to school to study ‘doctoring’. Unlike Engineers who derived their title from their course of study, this is not entirely so in the health sector.
In the school of health or school of medicine, as it’s called in different universities, the courses are Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry, Nursing, Medical Rehabilitation or Physical Medicine, Radiography, Medical Laboratory and Optometry. None of these courses is called Doctoring. The word Doctor came to be associated with the art of healing in the medieval period and were initially called Physician and still called so till date. With the advent of Doctor of Philosophy which is the highest level associated with teaching, it later became ascribed to those saddled with the art of healing.
The question now bothers to who is a healer in the health profession and who is a paramedic; a degrading word that has been used many times by Nigerian Physicians to spite other medical workers, who retaliates by calling them Allopathic officers.
In line with international best practices, only the World Health Organisation (WHO) not World Medical Association and International Labor Organisation (ILO) can define the meaning of every profession. In listing structures for each worker, all professionals were listed as ‘Health Professionals’ and not ‘Medical Professionals’. They were divided into two health groups for easy recognition. The first group listed are: Medical Doctors (Generalist Medical Practitioners and Specialist Medical Practitioners), Nursing and Midwifery Professionals, Traditional and Complementary Medicine Professionals, ***Paramedical Practitioners and Veterinarians.
The second group listed Dentists, Pharmacists, Environmental and Occupational Health and Hygiene Professionals, Physiotherapists, Dieticians and Nutritionists, Audiologists and Speech Therapists, Optometrists and Ophthalmic Opticians and Health Professionals Not Elsewhere Classified.
Note that Dentists which is a member of NMA is in the second category and Paramedics in the first category, according to International best practices that we like to flout.
Let us take a look at WHO definition of these core workers in the health sector.
According to WHO, ‘a Generalist medical doctors (including family and primary care doctors) diagnose, TREAT and prevent illness, disease, injury, and other physical and mental impairments and maintain general health in humans through application of the principles and procedures of modern medicine. They plan, supervise and evaluate the implementation of care and treatment plans by other health care providers. They do not limit their practice to certain disease categories or methods of treatment, and may assume responsibility for the provision of continuing and comprehensive medical care to individuals, families and communities’.
Same WHO notes that ‘Nursing professionals provide TREATMENT, support and care services for people who are in need of nursing care due to the effects of ageing, injury, illness or other physical or mental impairment, or potential risks to health, according to the practice and standards of modern nursing. They assume responsibility for the planning and management of the care of patients, including the supervision of other health care workers, working autonomously or in teams with medical doctors and others in the practical application of preventive and curative measures in clinical and community settings’.
Going down to traditional level, WHO was direct when it stated that ‘Traditional and complementary medicine professionals examine patients and prevent and TREAT illness, disease, injury and other physical, mental and psychosocial ailments by applying knowledge, skills and practices acquired through extensive study of the theories and experiences originating in specific cultures. They research, develop and implement treatment plans using applications such as acupuncture, ayurvedic, homoeopathic and herbal medicine’.
For Dentists, the world body noted that ‘Dentists (including dental surgeons and related) diagnose, TREAT and prevent diseases, injuries and abnormalities of the teeth, mouth, jaws and associated tissues by applying the principles and procedures of modern dentistry. They use a broad range of specialized diagnostic, surgical and other techniques to promote and restore oral health’.
According to its supreme definition, ‘Pharmacists store, preserve, compound and dispense medicinal products. They counsel on the proper use and adverse effects of drugs and medicines following prescriptions issued by medical doctors and other health professionals. They contribute to researching, testing, preparing, prescribing and monitoring medicinal therapies for optimizing human health’.
For Physiotherapists, WHO didn’t mince word saying that ‘Physiotherapists assess, plan and implement rehabilitative programs that improve or restore human motor functions, maximize movement ability, relieve pain syndromes, and treat or prevent physical challenges associated with injuries, diseases and other impairments. They apply a broad range of physical therapies and techniques such as movement, ultrasound, heating, laser and other techniques. They may develop and implement programmes for screening and prevention of common physical ailments and disorders. ILO in classifying their job stated that “Physiotherapists and related associate professionals TREAT disorders of bones, muscles and parts of the circulatory or the nervous system by manipulative methods, and ultrasound, heating, laser or similar techniques, or apply physiotherapy and related therapies as part of the treatment for the physically disabled, mentally ill or unbalanced.
For Optometrists, the world body says Optometrists and ophthalmic opticians provide diagnosis, management and TREATMENT services for disorders of the eyes and visual system. They counsel and advise on eye care and safety, and prescribe optical aids or other therapies for visual disturbance.
While this may sound as a thesis, I will leave out what the sacred definition of WHO and ILO gave to the two eyes of medicine, notably Radiography and Medical Laboratory. The reader can Google it up.
By these definitions, five professions TREAT sicknesses and disorders and one provides the drugs or body gel they prescribe, while two gives a clearer picture of the diagnosis through tests and imaging.
They are General Practitioner called Medical Doctor, Traditional or complimentary medicine practitioners/
Homeopathy, Dentists, Nurses, Optometrists and Physiotherapists. Nursing being a unique and distinct profession cannot be called Doctors, but the rest whose primary duties is to diagnose treat and certify fit can be called Doctor if their regulatory body so wish.
On consultancy status, it is criminal for a profession to demand for such almighty position simply because of the years spent in service and not by merit. It’s akin to saying a lecturer can rise to the level of Professorship without studying to get PhD. This is where I disagree with JOHESU. Medical Doctors who are consultants didn’t jump the rope. They went through the rigors of residency training, became fellows and merited it.
Medical practice is not law that is determined by the years of practice which leads to the award of SAN. It is study, quest to break medical grounds and solve the everyday health challenges that the world faces. No amount of experience can totally give clinicians that except devotion to knowledge, which is gained through the appropriate postgraduate school or colleges.
It is however unjust for the current disparity in salaries of the two warring groups. Whoever separated the salary structure into CONMESS and CONHESS is the common enemy that we should be fighting today.
It’s absurd and ridiculous that a House Officer will earn higher than a working class Nurse or any other core medical practitioners, when the difference in study is one year. Only a specialist GP should be allowed to earn more than any other clinician, who refuses to also specialize in his/her own field.
The FG should as a matter of urgency make all health workers one salary structure, and their wages determined by level of qualification and specialty as operated globally. The Ministry of Health should be headed by hospitals administrators and not physicians, just as the hospitals should not also be headed by a Dentist or Nurse.
For heaven sake, it’s a profit making venture and not a professional body that the Medical Doctors heading it have turned it to. Only the Chief Medical Advisory Committee (CMAC) head should be a Physician while the Deputy CMAC should be from other clinical department like Medical Laboratory or Pharmacy.
International best practices that we scream always have proven that the top countries in medical field do not have any health worker as their Minister or Head of health sector. Oh, what about the almighty WHO that defines health, the head is not also a medical doctor, but a biologist. If WHO was a Nigerian union, it’s crystal clear that there would have been strike if a Nurse is appointed the head. What then are we saying?
As for JOHESU, calling off the strike now will forever bring your union to doom. Let the government stop salaries till next year, but do not give in to threats and blackmail. Your requests apart from ‘consultancy by years of service’ are just, and Nigerians are solidly behind you, even though we are the ones that ultimately feel the pain. There’s unity in strength and this is the time to be united. The battle is not against NMA but the Federal Government who reserves the right to implement your demands.
Every profession is independent of each other and this right to decency of work cannot be taken from you, not now, tomorrow or in the future.
To be continued…
These little things matter…
Fejiro Oliver, an Investigative Journalist, Media Consultant and Human Rights Activist is also the Co-Convener of Coalition of Human Rights Defender (CHORD) and can be reached on +2348022050733 (SMS ONLY) or secretsreporters@gmail.com. Engage him on twitter on @fejirooliver86.

The patient, a quadriplegic with an irregular heartbeat, was set to get a pacemaker when a test came back suggesting he had pneumonia, delaying surgery and lengthening his hospital stay.

But when a medical team consulted at his bedside, Brandy Gunsolus, a Rutgers University clinical lab doctoral student and certified medical laboratory scientist, questioned the diagnosis. She noted the man used a breathing tube – and that bacteria found in a test result likely came from the tube, not his lungs. A second test, considered the gold standard in medical care, was clear. The attending physician agreed with her assessment.

“He got his pacemaker the next day, which saved 10 days on intravenous antibiotics, 10 days on a ventilator and $22,000 in hospital costs,” said Gunsolus, who is completing her residency at a Rutgers-affiliated Georgia hospital.

Photo: Courtesy of Brandy Gunsolus

At that moment, Gunsolus felt fully integrated into the health care team. For the past year, the doctoral student has been a pioneer in a new health care model that brings advanced-practice clinical lab scientists to a patient’s bedside to work hand-in-hand with physicians and other health care professionals.

On May 16, Gunsolus will be the first graduate of a doctoral program that is the first of its kind in the nation – Rutgers School of Health Professions’ advanced practice doctorate in clinical laboratory science (DCLS). The school launched the program in 2014 to address an ongoing need for greater accuracy and cost efficiency in lab testing.

Gunsolus saw firsthand the need to integrate lab science into the health care system. A medical lab manager in Louisiana, she was frequently asked what lab tests to order and if she could help interpret the results. Her desire to be fully prepared to answer those questions fueled her decision to get a master’s degree in clinical laboratory science at the School of Health Professions in 2013 and then to enroll in the doctoral program.

“There is a gap between practicing physicians and labs not understanding the correct tests to order or how to interpret them. For patient safety, we need to fill this gap,” she said.

In addition to performing rounds at the hospital with the medical team, Gunsolus reviews all laboratory test orders and is part of the hospital’s diagnostic management team as well as a nationally sponsored consumer information response team that answers patient questions about lab tests. During her residency, she documented nearly $700,000 in savings that came from consulting with clinicians and health care providers about lab tests. But what most excites her is being part of the attending health care team.

“At first it was a bit scary. I didn’t know if I’d be accepted, but overwhelmingly there’s been a positive result,” said Gunsolus, who has written a blog about her journey in the Rutgers doctoral program. “I’ve had physicians say, ‘I want you to do the rounds with me every day.'”

She looks forward to beginning her paid job June 1 at the Augusta, Georgia, hospital as the nation’s first doctor of clinical lab science.

“Brandy has become a trailblazer, forging a new clinical career path for medical laboratory scientists and advancing the quality of health care,” said Nadine Fydryszewski, DCLS program director and professor in clinical laboratory science.

Source: news.rutgers.edu

MEDICAL DOCTORS ARE POMPOUS AND UNCIVILIZED

Obadiah Umaru

The last time NMA went on strike, Nigerians from all works of life pressed on government to look into their issues so that our hospitals will continue to offer services to Nigerians

Today, the hospitals are again shut down due to JOHESU strike and unthinkably, NMA have been the most vocal, not in to quell the impasse but to fuel it. They are insisting that government should not listen to, or meet the demands of, JOHESU. Their reason for the meddlesomeness in the many press releases and media engagement is to keep wide the gap of earned allowance between them and other health professionals. This is selfishness and greed.

I ceased to regard any medical doctor since I took my ailing mother to the hospital in the early 2009 and got disgusting and irresponsible treat from a consultant. He attended to my mum then wrote drugs for us to buy. I asked what he was treating, he said he was suspecting septicaemia so we should try so and so antibiotics. I told him it sounds like guess work. He kept quiet. I requested if we could be sure of what were are treating, he picked offence and started shouting. Demanding to know if I wanted to teach him his work. I said I was the customer/client here and I should be the king. He said the only king in the hospital is the doctor. He was a young man so I thought it was untamed exuberance. While I was on the matter, a nurse came and over heard us, inadvertently, she asked if we has done lab test. The aggression with which the consultant shouted her down was marvelling. I wondered for a minute if it was his private hospital but I knew I was in a public hospital where all were employees of government. I asked why he addressed his colleague in that manner but he told me that the nurses and pharmacists were subservient to him. He told me how much he was earning and how much pharmacists earned, using it to justify his status. I was shocked.

I switched back to the prescription he had written and asked if we could be sent to the lab, he opposed it,saying that the most arrogant people in the hospital were the lab people. I asked how, he said, they have arrogated a title of scientists to themselves and don't want to work under pathologists. I was shocked as what that got to do with my mum's lab test. Within my 10min of being with him, he had skinned the nurses, the pharmacy and the lab alive. Then I knew the doctors were the real problems.

In summary, he insisted on treating without lab test. I was angry and left also without his prescription. I took my mum to a private laboratory and explained my situation. The lab tests showed leukemia and my elder brother in UK had to arrange for mum to undergo treatment abroad

Since then, I have followed keenly the disregard end humiliation that the doctors treat other health workers in Nigeria with the passive support of health ministers and commissioners. They often go the side of NMA during industrial disputes by quickly responding to demands of doctors and speaking English on demands others health workers.

I think the duration of study for doctors is only one year extra to pharmacists, lab scientists etc, yet they earn two times more than the non-doctors upon entering public service. Why is this so? Only doctors are heading hospitals and ministries of health in Nigeria. Why? This is not the case in other countries on Europe and Asia. Even the current DG of WHO is not a medical doctor. Where did the Nigerian medical doctor got his ego from to hold other health professionals in perpetual captivity? I call on JOHESU to break these ancient chains of slavery and emancipate themselves and our health system in Nigeria. The health system under ineptitude of medical doctors keeps recording abysmal indices year in year out to the extent that our President cannot find one health facility to treat ordinary ear infection.

I urge President Buhari to immediately sack the minister of health in view of his recent irresponsible comments on this ongoing strike. It is a pitiable anticlimax in our civilization

Lastly, the curriculum of MBBS should be reviewed to include civic education for would-be medical doctors in Nigeria. Their incivility is the cause of industrial unrest in the health system in Nigeria today.

Topshow2010:
The patient, a quadriplegic with an irregular heartbeat, was set to get a pacemaker when a test came back suggesting he had pneumonia, delaying surgery and lengthening his hospital stay.

But when a medical team consulted at his bedside, Brandy Gunsolus, a Rutgers University clinical lab doctoral student and certified medical laboratory scientist, questioned the diagnosis. She noted the man used a breathing tube – and that bacteria found in a test result likely came from the tube, not his lungs. A second test, considered the gold standard in medical care, was clear. The attending physician agreed with her assessment.

“He got his pacemaker the next day, which saved 10 days on intravenous antibiotics, 10 days on a ventilator and $22,000 in hospital costs,” said Gunsolus, who is completing her residency at a Rutgers-affiliated Georgia hospital.

Photo: Courtesy of Brandy Gunsolus

At that moment, Gunsolus felt fully integrated into the health care team. For the past year, the doctoral student has been a pioneer in a new health care model that brings advanced-practice clinical lab scientists to a patient’s bedside to work hand-in-hand with physicians and other health care professionals.

On May 16, Gunsolus will be the first graduate of a doctoral program that is the first of its kind in the nation – Rutgers School of Health Professions’ advanced practice doctorate in clinical laboratory science (DCLS). The school launched the program in 2014 to address an ongoing need for greater accuracy and cost efficiency in lab testing.

Gunsolus saw firsthand the need to integrate lab science into the health care system. A medical lab manager in Louisiana, she was frequently asked what lab tests to order and if she could help interpret the results. Her desire to be fully prepared to answer those questions fueled her decision to get a master’s degree in clinical laboratory science at the School of Health Professions in 2013 and then to enroll in the doctoral program.

“There is a gap between practicing physicians and labs not understanding the correct tests to order or how to interpret them. For patient safety, we need to fill this gap,” she said.

In addition to performing rounds at the hospital with the medical team, Gunsolus reviews all laboratory test orders and is part of the hospital’s diagnostic management team as well as a nationally sponsored consumer information response team that answers patient questions about lab tests. During her residency, she documented nearly $700,000 in savings that came from consulting with clinicians and health care providers about lab tests. But what most excites her is being part of the attending health care team.

“At first it was a bit scary. I didn’t know if I’d be accepted, but overwhelmingly there’s been a positive result,” said Gunsolus, who has written a blog about her journey in the Rutgers doctoral program. “I’ve had physicians say, ‘I want you to do the rounds with me every day.'”

She looks forward to beginning her paid job June 1 at the Augusta, Georgia, hospital as the nation’s first doctor of clinical lab science.

“Brandy has become a trailblazer, forging a new clinical career path for medical laboratory scientists and advancing the quality of health care,” said Nadine Fydryszewski, DCLS program director and professor in clinical laboratory science.

Source: news.rutgers.edu

Pls what is this gold standard test? Was the patient on a ventilator? How was the initial sample collected? Any other risk factor for pneumonia apart from quadriplegia in this patient?

TempoJames:



Nonsense!
You are total novice of what M.D means.
Ask even the health workers of the meaning of M.D
It is only application to specialist doctors.

Stop trying to mislead people. Nobody who actually went through a four-wall will claim that MD is an equivalent of PhD.

MD just like PharmD, Dmls, DPT are professional doctorates. PhD is an academic research-based doctorate. I can have a PharmD, MD, Dmls but that does not give me the priviledge of a PhD in an academic setting.

TempoJames:


Talks like a real novice go and browse workers and the head of department in med laboratory in Hopkins Hospital and other standard hospitals in the world.
Microbiologists and SLT work in a standard medical laboratory and pathologists are the head.Boy!

Government laboratories in advanced countries are headed by Medical laboratory scientists. A Medical scientist is the Laboratory director of NHS in UK

phase1:
MEDICAL DOCTORS ARE POMPOUS AND UNCIVILIZED

Obadiah Umaru

The last time NMA went on strike, Nigerians from all works of life pressed on government to look into their issues so that our hospitals will continue to offer services to Nigerians

Today, the hospitals are again shut down due to JOHESU strike and unthinkably, NMA have been the most vocal, not in to quell the impasse but to fuel it. They are insisting that government should not listen to, or meet the demands of, JOHESU. Their reason for the meddlesomeness in the many press releases and media engagement is to keep wide the gap of earned allowance between them and other health professionals. This is selfishness and greed.

I ceased to regard any medical doctor since I took my ailing mother to the hospital in the early 2009 and got disgusting and irresponsible treat from a consultant. He attended to my mum then wrote drugs for us to buy. I asked what he was treating, he said he was suspecting septicaemia so we should try so and so antibiotics. I told him it sounds like guess work. He kept quiet. I requested if we could be sure of what were are treating, he picked offence and started shouting. Demanding to know if I wanted to teach him his work. I said I was the customer/client here and I should be the king. He said the only king in the hospital is the doctor. He was a young man so I thought it was untamed exuberance. While I was on the matter, a nurse came and over heard us, inadvertently, she asked if we has done lab test. The aggression with which the consultant shouted her down was marvelling. I wondered for a minute if it was his private hospital but I knew I was in a public hospital where all were employees of government. I asked why he addressed his colleague in that manner but he told me that the nurses and pharmacists were subservient to him. He told me how much he was earning and how much pharmacists earned, using it to justify his status. I was shocked.

I switched back to the prescription he had written and asked if we could be sent to the lab, he opposed it,saying that the most arrogant people in the hospital were the lab people. I asked how, he said, they have arrogated a title of scientists to themselves and don't want to work under pathologists. I was shocked as what that got to do with my mum's lab test. Within my 10min of being with him, he had skinned the nurses, the pharmacy and the lab alive. Then I knew the doctors were the real problems.

In summary, he insisted on treating without lab test. I was angry and left also without his prescription. I took my mum to a private laboratory and explained my situation. The lab tests showed leukemia and my elder brother in UK had to arrange for mum to undergo treatment abroad

Since then, I have followed keenly the disregard end humiliation that the doctors treat other health workers in Nigeria with the passive support of health ministers and commissioners. They often go the side of NMA during industrial disputes by quickly responding to demands of doctors and speaking English on demands others health workers.

I think the duration of study for doctors is only one year extra to pharmacists, lab scientists etc, yet they earn two times more than the non-doctors upon entering public service. Why is this so? Only doctors are heading hospitals and ministries of health in Nigeria. Why? This is not the case in other countries on Europe and Asia. Even the current DG of WHO is not a medical doctor. Where did the Nigerian medical doctor got his ego from to hold other health professionals in perpetual captivity? I call on JOHESU to break these ancient chains of slavery and emancipate themselves and our health system in Nigeria. The health system under ineptitude of medical doctors keeps recording abysmal indices year in year out to the extent that our President cannot find one health facility to treat ordinary ear infection.

I urge President Buhari to immediately sack the minister of health in view of his recent irresponsible comments on this ongoing strike. It is a pitiable anticlimax in our civilization

Lastly, the curriculum of MBBS should be reviewed to include civic education for would-be medical doctors in Nigeria. Their incivility is the cause of industrial unrest in the health system in Nigeria today.

I find it hard to believe a consultant had the time to tell u about his salary. This sounds fictitious.[size=8pt][/size]

Cityguy:

You are right to an extent but you started with abuse and that had an effect on any sense you tried making. Doctors need other support staff but then each person needs to know his or her place in scheme of things. Health care can't be left rudderless. And to correct t your impression that doctors can't work in this condition, you obviously don't know to what extent JOHESU has gone and is still going to ensure that patients are not seen by doctors. Good thing however is that this has not deterred the doctors. Clinics run, emergency services are rendered and steps will be taken to ensure scope of care is broadened so hapless Nigerians would be spared of the unnecessary pain this drama has brought.

Stop trying to deceiving Nigerians, most physicians are in their private hospitals as the JOHESU strike rages on because they cannot function without JOHESU staffs. The consulting rooms are empty but NMA is releasing fake press releases and paying their friends in the media to write that the 'hospitals are working' and insinuate that Johesu professionals are 'not important' while patients are dying.

Anyway, the truth will prevail.If the Ministry of health (ministry of physicians) which is actually an appendage of NMA likes, they can refuse to pay JOHESU staffs for 10 years but common sense will prevail. That strike will not end until all previous agreements are implemented and new ones considered actively.

Johesu will play that politics you've been playing for decades till they get what they want.

JOHESU have suffered so much injustices over the decades, things can never be worse than it already is so they have no where to go but up.

The strike goes on.

Amarabae:

You are still in medical school and yet fighting Johesu/Nma civil war.
If you graduate, you will become a general in it
.

The brainwashing of physicians that other health professionals are not important starts from their classrooms.The funny thing is that the worst of them who failed as practising physicians are the ones running to the lecture rooms and teaching them in those classrooms. They inculcate all form of narcissistic ideologies into them as failed sadists who couldn't run private practices. When these brainwashed students come out they feel they own the health sector alone and angry at everyone else who feels otherwise.

I overheard one of them talking to his colleagues and lamenting profusely that a Medical Scientist printed the words 'Scientist' and proudly wore it as a badge on his beautiful lab coat as his title. He expected the Scientist to wear rags and roll on the ground when he sights a physician.

Dont physicians print the word 'doctor' on their wardcoats? Lol

The other was crying that nurses and pharmacists hang stethoscopes in their cars for
Identification as healthworkers. See frivoulous lamentations caused by inferiority complex oo?

LWKMD.

phase1:


The brainwashing of physicians that other health professionals are not important starts from their schools. When they come out they feel they own the ministry of health alone.

I overheard one of them talking to his colleagues and lamenting profusely that a Medical Scientist printed the words 'Scientist' and proudly wore it as a badge on his beautiful lab coat to educate people about his title. He expected the Scientist to wear rags and roll on the ground when he sights a physician.

The other was crying that nurses and pharmacists hang stethoscopes in their cars for
Identification as healthworkers. See frivoulous lamentations caused by inferiority complex oo?

LWKMD.

Don't mind them.
They all have a narcissistic personality disorder.
It's a psychological issues..
That's why many of them are not sociable in public and are boring in nature.
Let them go and remove the stethoscopes that some health workers hang in their cars.
I am very proud of johesu, we mean business this time around.
We will fight to the end

Devlinn:

I find it hard to believe a consultant had the time to tell u about his salary. This sounds fictitious.[size=8pt][/size]

There is no level of exuberance, arrogance, backbitting and narcissism that has not been exhibited by physicians especially the empty-headed ones, so it is not too difficult to believe.

JOHESU is a failure. 95%(5 idiots) gainst 5%(1 authority)

JOHESU is a failure. 95%(5 idiots) against 5%(1 authority)

Johesu is a failure! 95%(5 idiots) against 5%(1 authority). The govt knows Johesu is dispensable but the health care system can't do without doctors.
They wouldn't accede to stupid demands. skipping of level 10 and adjustment of retirement age to 65yrs is farthest the govt can go. Johesu will die of hunger at home. Doctors in public sector are still paid monthly. Those in private sector are booming this period.
NMA is a boss. They address the insurbodination of johesu, frontally! Govt can't risk provoking the ultimate detrimental action of NMA.:
If you like die... Nigerians are striving in the private sector and emergency units in d public sector. I just pity the poor ones. well chemists will boom. You will be surprise that a first degree holder in microbiology or SLT will be running lab tests for d chemists to treat the very poor ones. Traditional practitioners are replacing physiotherapists. Only those in community pharmacy will survive the hunger.
The same thing that happened to non-lecturing staffs is what will happen to johesu. The nurses will first start returning then others will join then johesu will die a painful death.
You guys only see minister of health and labour? You forgotten that Saraki, the senate president is a medical doctor?
Doctors own the Government.

amaham:


Pls what is this gold standard test? Was the patient on a ventilator? How was the initial sample collected? Any other risk factor for pneumonia apart from quadriplegia in this patient?

The highly cerebral and almighty dokita of d federal republic of Nigeria,kindly direct ur enquiries to the source or d link as stated in the write up.Thanks

phase1:


Stop trying to deceiving Nigerians, most physicians are in their private hospitals as the JOHESU strike rages on because they cannot function without JOHESU staffs. The consulting rooms are empty but NMA is releasing fake press releases and paying their friends in the media to write that the 'hospitals are working' and insinuate that Johesu professionals are 'not important' while patients are dying.

Anyway, the truth will prevail.If the Ministry of health (ministry of physicians) which is actually an appendage of NMA likes, they can refuse to pay JOHESU staffs for 10 years but common sense will prevail. That strike will not end until all previous agreements are implemented and new ones considered actively.

Johesu will play that politics you've been playing for decades till they get what they want.

JOHESU have suffered so much injustices over the decades, things can never be worse than it already is so they have no where to go but up.

The strike goes on.

Yes, aluta continua. With all pleasure.

TempoJames:
Johesu is a failure! 95%(5 idiots) against 5%(1 authority). The govt knows Johesu is dispensable but the health care system can't do without doctors.
They wouldn't accede to stupid demands. skipping of level 10 and adjustment of retirement age to 65yrs is farthest the govt can go. Johesu will die of hunger at home. Doctors in public sector are still paid monthly. Those in private sector are booming this period.
NMA is a boss. They address the insurbodination of johesu, frontally! Govt can't risk provoking the ultimate detrimental action of NMA.:
If you like die... Nigerians are striving in the private sector and emergency units in d public sector. I just pity the poor ones. well chemists will boom. You will be surprise that a first degree holder in microbiology or SLT will be running lab tests for d chemists to treat the very poor ones. Traditional practitioners are replacing physiotherapists. Only those in community pharmacy will survive the hunger.
The same thing that happened to non-lecturing staffs is what will happen to johesu. The nurses will first start returning then others will join then johesu will die a painful death.
You guys only see minister of health and labour? You forgotten that Saraki, the senate president is a medical doctor?
Doctors own the Government.

And what did you say you are again?
Consultant?
Rubbish! so with everything that is been said,this is what you can comeup with.
I don't like insulting people if not i would have decend on you verbally.

arinzos:

And what did you say you are again?
Consultant?
Rubbish! so with everything that is been said,this is what you can comeup with.
I don't like insulting people if not i would have decend on you verbally.

Davido remix: Johesu think say dem bad pass us but nobody badder ku

Joshesu if no get money hide ur face...fire burn them.

Johesu strike has already failed in Lagos....
Some workers have start returning
NMA is boss
pathologists are bosses
Radiologists are bosses.
Johesu bhad but doctors bhaddest.....

The same court that passed Judgement in favour of Johesu has now order suspension of strike.
Johesu wake up to the reality of Nigeria!
Population is nonsense.
A single authority speaks louder than noises made by population of recalcitrants.
Doctor is senate president, minister of labour and will always be minister of health. Johesu what is your stronghold? Strike and noise?
It is a pity that the noble pharmacists had to join the mediocres.
Doctors have never interefered with the activities of the pharmaceutical firms afterall we are not licensed and to be frank a doctor , myself included by training is a total novice in drug production(pharmacognosy) so it wouldn't be proper thinking of heading a pharmaceutical firm....But in the Hospital environment doctors are even superior in knowledge of drug use(pharmacology/therapeutics)pathology, radiology, and overalll patient care. Doctor automatically owns the hospital and lab therein by virtue of training.
I know pharmacists in the house will want to argue. A pharmacist will know drugs used for empirical tx but a doctor by his deep knowledge of pathology knows u shouldn't start a px on a drug yet untill u get samples for investigations as it can influence d results.
A doctor with deep knowledge of pathology(morbid,chemical n hematology) not just microbiology knows better use of drugs. A pharmacist/ other health professions may never understand why a doctor refuses to give hematinics or transfuse a child with acute febrile illness that is pale with even s/s of anemia n mild to moderate low Hb conc.
Others may never understand why a doc refuses to give paracetamol to a child with fever due to a viral infection.
Only radiographers think that once there is fluid in the rectouterine pouch of douglas it signifies PID. Ofcourse it is a total fallacy. Someone with PID with no s/s no pain? Ofcourse it can be a normal ultrasound finding. Radiologists know that.
Doctors can't be replaced by any other profession.
The earlier each profession recognizes its limitations the better for us all.

TempoJames:



Davido remix: Johesu think say dem bad pass us but nobody badder ku

Joshesu if no get money hide ur face...fire burn them.

Johesu strike has already failed in Lagos....
Some workers have start returning
NMA is boss
pathologists are bosses
Radiologists are bosses.
Johesu bhad but doctors bhaddest.....

The same court that passed Judgement in favour of Johesu has now order suspension of strike.
Johesu wake up to the reality of Nigeria!
Population is nonsense.
A single authority speaks louder than noises made by population of recalcitrants.
Doctor is senate president, minister of labour and will always be minister of health. Johesu what is your stronghold? Strike and noise?
It is a pity that the noble pharmacists had to join the mediocres.
Doctors have never interefered with the activities of the pharmaceutical firms afterall we are not licensed and to be frank a doctor , myself included by training is a total novice in drug production(pharmacognosy) so it wouldn't be proper thinking of heading a pharmaceutical firm....But in the Hospital environment doctors are even superior in knowledge of drug use(pharmacology/therapeutics)pathology, radiology, and overalll patient care. Doctor automatically owns the hospital and lab therein by virtue of training.
I know pharmacists in the house will want to argue. A pharmacist will know drugs used for empirical tx but a doctor by his deep knowledge of pathology knows u shouldn't start a px on a drug yet untill u get samples for investigations as it can influence d results.
A doctor with deep knowledge of pathology(morbid,chemical n hematology) not just microbiology knows better use of drugs. A pharmacist/ other health professions may never understand why a doctor refuses to give hematinics or transfuse a child with acute febrile illness that is pale with even s/s of anemia n mild to moderate low Hb conc
Doctors can't be replaced by any other profession.
The earlier each profession recognizes its limitations the better for us all.

pls get your fact straight JOHESU national body in the press briefing yesterday has relaxed the strike in Lagos and Yobe states as appreciation to the state governments for meeting their demands. Your type was the reason while the great Ikemba once said: "Having a dialogue with my country men is like having a dialogue with the deaf; it requires a great deal of repetition, a great deal of shouting and a great deal of gesticulation. In spite of all these efforts, you still run the risk of being misunderstood". So disobeying court injunctions is now a heroic act abi. This questions that you are absolutely arrogant and uncivilized with your sense of judgement doctored, beclouded with petty sentiments and illiteracy. If the great POTUS will obey a high court injunction to drop his famous travel ban, it is a great lesson to be learnt that the hallmark of civilization is law and order and civility. Mr, your comments in this thread shows you are either deaf, daft or purely an illiterate.

# fowardedasrecieved . Breaking news.... ABUJA – THE Joint Health Sector Union, JOHESU, Thursday night relaxed its four weeks old strike in Lagos, Kano and Yobe states to accommodate emergency services. JOHESU The union said that the decision to relax the strike in the three states as a show of appreciation to the state governments for meeting the clamour and terms of settlement demanded by the unions. Speaking to journalists at a press briefing, the National President of JOHESU, Biobelemoye Josiah, also called for the immediate sack of the Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole; accusing him of posing as a major barrier to the resolution of the on-going nationwide strike of health workers. His words: “It is paramount we seize this discourse to specially convey deep appreciation to State Governments which have gone ahead to meet the various clamours and terms of settlement in agreements with government. This include Yobe and Lagos State which have now adjusted the CONHESS Scale as demanded. “We specially commend the Lagos State Government for approving the consultancy cadre for pharmacists in its employment. Just like the Niger State Government did with pharmacists since 2012. “The JOHESU also expresses gratitude to the Kano State government for ensuring good welfare package for its healthcare work force in addition to the intervention of His Excellency Governor Ganduje to ameliorate the on-going strike action. “We urge our members in Lagos, Yobe and Kano to tactically relax the strike to accommodate emergency services in those states as a measure of goodwill. “President Buhari should immediately remove Professor Isaac Adewole from office, as his continued stay remains a major barrier to the resolution of the on-going nationwide strike of health workers. This is a major threat to Public Health especially at a time that the dreaded Ebola disease is currently rampaging in some African Countries. “The Federal Government must energise the deadlocked negotiations between the JOHESU and Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment with genuine conciliators who have national interest. “Specifically, a befitting budget to offset the already compromised three options presented by JOHESU to the Federal Government on May 16, 2018 must be made available through interventions facilitated by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation. “We demand an immediate implementation of the terms of settlement of the September 30, 2017 agreement.” We’ll boycott further negotiations, if…. On the order by the National Industrial Court directing members of the union to suspend their on-going strike, and resume duties across the nation within 24 hours, Comrade Josiah said: “We have not been served any court notice. But if it happens that the Ministries of Health and Labour in any way sponsored the ex-parte motion that brought about the court order, we will boycott further negotiations. “The two ministries lack the moral right to take JOHESU to court for any reason, having disobeyed no less than eight court orders in favour of the union.”

Thanks18:
# fowardedasrecieved .
Breaking news.... ABUJA – THE Joint Health Sector Union,
JOHESU, Thursday night relaxed its four weeks
old strike in Lagos, Kano and Yobe states to
accommodate emergency services.
JOHESU
The union said that the decision to relax the
strike in the three states as a show of
appreciation to the state governments for
meeting the clamour and terms of settlement
demanded by the unions.
Speaking to journalists at a press briefing, the
National President of JOHESU, Biobelemoye
Josiah, also called for the immediate sack of
the Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole;
accusing him of posing as a major barrier to
the resolution of the on-going nationwide
strike of health workers.
His words: “It is paramount we seize this
discourse to specially convey deep
appreciation to State Governments which have
gone ahead to meet the various clamours and
terms of settlement in agreements with
government. This include Yobe and Lagos
State which have now adjusted the CONHESS
Scale as demanded.
“We specially commend the Lagos State
Government for approving the consultancy
cadre for pharmacists in its employment. Just
like the Niger State Government did with
pharmacists since 2012.
“The JOHESU also expresses gratitude to the
Kano State government for ensuring good
welfare package for its healthcare work force
in addition to the intervention of His
Excellency Governor Ganduje to ameliorate the
on-going strike action.
“We urge our members in Lagos, Yobe and
Kano to tactically relax the strike to
accommodate emergency services in those
states as a measure of goodwill.
“President Buhari should immediately remove
Professor Isaac Adewole from office, as his
continued stay remains a major barrier to the
resolution of the on-going nationwide strike of
health workers. This is a major threat to Public
Health especially at a time that the dreaded
Ebola disease is currently rampaging in some
African Countries.
“The Federal Government must energise the
deadlocked negotiations between the JOHESU
and Federal Ministry of Labour and
Employment with genuine conciliators who
have national interest.
“Specifically, a befitting budget to offset the
already compromised three options presented
by JOHESU to the Federal Government on May
16, 2018 must be made available through
interventions facilitated by the Office of the
Secretary to the Government of the
Federation.
“We demand an immediate implementation of
the terms of settlement of the September 30,
2017 agreement.”
We’ll boycott further negotiations, if….
On the order by the National Industrial Court
directing members of the union to suspend
their on-going strike, and resume duties across
the nation within 24 hours, Comrade Josiah
said: “We have not been served any court
notice. But if it happens that the Ministries of
Health and Labour in any way sponsored the
ex-parte motion that brought about the court
order, we will boycott further negotiations.
“The two ministries lack the moral right to
take JOHESU to court for any reason, having
disobeyed no less than eight court orders in
favour of the union.”

Wait and see what will happen.
Workers in other states will return out of frustration.
Govt ain't paying a damn so far no bill to that effect has pased through senate.
I stated earlier I bet my testes for a bilateral orchidectomy Johesu can't achieve more than docs allow.
These are words of frustration. If at all d health minister will be reaplaced it will be by another medical doctor.

Franklyly:
NMA threatens to embark on Strike if FG yields to the demands of other striking health workers under JOHESU.

@lalasticlala

Devil is a Nigerian

THE HIPPOCRATIC LOATHE – Flicking the switch

“Declare the past, diagnose the present, foretell the future.”
― Hippocrates

When you step into a room and flick a switch, you either create light or you create darkness, in this quagmire of unnecessary dark rancor let us flick the switch and create light.
International best practice is defined as” A program, activity or strategy that has worked within one organization and shows promise during its early stages for becoming a best practice with long-term sustainable impact. A promising practice must have some objective basis for claiming effectiveness and must have the potential for replication among other organizations”, meaning we will adopt an already developed and proven process or strategy and make it our way of life, in short copy and paste, or we set a precedence of chaos and hope others will copy it as international best practice exported from us to them with love.
Internationally, every professional working in the health sector apart from Medical Doctors and Nurses are referred to as “ALLIED HEALTH WORKERS” who are support staff to the aforementioned, locally in Nigeria they are referred to as “JOINT HEALTH SECTOR UNIONS” (JOHESU) that comprises the bulk of the work force save the Medical Doctors.
When you or your loved one goes to seek medical attention from qualified and well-trained personnel’s, a machinery is set in motion around you, which comprises these support staff and the medical personnel. The record staff opens a new case note for you or extract one you used in your previous visit, he passes this case note on to the nurse, who checks your vitals and gets you ready in the consulting/examination room for the Medical Doctor.
The Doctor asks you series of questions, your answers direct his train of thought, with a few differential diagnoses at the back of his mind, he examines you, which helps him to remove from or add to the list of diagnoses, to rule in or rule out options from this list, he orders for tests ranging from Imaging, body fluids examinations to tissue examinations.
These tests are carried out in different locations by medical doctors / JOHESU members, E.g A radiographer in radiology department will shoot the x-ray as he was trained to do, he will then pass the film, after developing it to the medical doctor in radiology department, who is a specialist to interpret the “picture” appropriately as he was trained to do, this radiographer and medical doctor only knows of your radiological report. You then proceed to the laboratory as directed by the medical doctor in the consulting room to chemical pathology laboratory, medical microbiology laboratory and haematology laboratory, different specialist medical doctors and laboratory technicians in these laboratories will run your body fluids and blood samples as they were trained to do, the medical doctors will write the reports and send same to the medical doctor in the consulting room, the doctors and the laboratory technicians are only privy to the reports obtained in their respective laboratories.
After all these, you will go back to the medical doctor in the consulting room with the gamut of reports, which will help the medical doctor to confirm the diagnosis he had on his mind or which will point him in another direction, after marrying your clinical presentation to the laboratory reports, he will make his choice of treatment, you will get an appropriate prescription detailing name of medication (drug), dosage of medication, mode of administration, frequency of usage and duration of usage of the drug. This is passed on to the pharmacist who will dispense the drugs, identify each one for you, explain mode of administration of each to you, often at times you will have to go back to the nurse for the administration of some of the medications, or to the medical doctor and some will be self-administered by you in your house, after which the records officer files your case note appropriately for subsequent usage, at the center of your care is the medical doctor in the consulting room holding all the pieces together and seeing the big picture, he is connecting all the units to give you a diagnosis and ultimately treatment, no one has the right or training to play this role save the medical doctor. Spending donkey years at the medical doctors’ elbow or shadowing him does not confer on anyone by default the right to play this role, unless you go into a university to study medicine as a course and swear the Hippocratic oath.
Doctors are responsible for protecting your personal information and data, hence the parlance, patient doctor confidentiality and not patient health worker confidentiality.
National Medical Association was founded in 1900 in the United States of America, while the counterpart Nigeria Medical Association was formed in 1951.
Following WWII, healthcare needs and demands increased, the Allied health workers was formed in 1967in the United States to support the work of medical doctors which will allow him concentrate more on diagnosing and shedding some weights to the support workers.
In 1976 the medical and health workers union of Nigeria was formed, which is a precursor to the hydra headed unequally yoked body, dubbed JOHESU.
It is very easy to become a medical doctor anywhere in the world, just meet the admission criteria, in Nigeria, you have to beat the JAMB/UTME cut off point, which Is usually steep, at this point no one clamors for “score parity”, “equity not equality”, everyone keeps mute and follows their chosen paths willfully or fatefully, after 1 year of general courses with other departments, the workload of medicine thereafter is something light but it is not for the faint hearted, in 2 years you finish 3 degree courses, that have students studying them independently for 5 years, following which you cross over to the clinicals where you earn 2 more degrees in 3 years, all these makes up the super degree MBBS (actually 4 degrees in 1).
After the 6 official years in school, 1-year internship and 1 year mandatory service to the fatherland, a medical doctor chooses his path, either he works as a medical officer or enroll for postgraduate study/service (residency), this takes another 6 years on the average of intense postgraduate studies, at the same time you are offering your service as a medical doctor (you are a graduate with a super degree, remember?) to the center where you are undergoing training, this chimera confuses the uninitiated who will call you, a student doctor (what a display of paucity of adequate cerebral functioning), following passing the prescribed professional examinations you become a specialist, you have invested on the average 14 years of your life in knowledge seeking and proper education as a medical doctor.
Let us create darkness on the call for “pay parity”, “equity not equality”, which is double standard anyway, with the definition of international best practice still fresh on our minds, let us turn our searchlights to the medical “eldorados” of this planet, to save time and space we will look at UK and USA.
USA is officially divided into 9 regions;
NC – north central, GL – great lakes, NW – north west, SC – south central, SE – south east, NE – north east, SW – south west, W – west, MA – mid Atlantic,
we will compare the pay of medical doctors with that of pharmacists, optometrists and nurses (they are the highest paid JOHESU units) in these regions.

NB: Pay is average per year for the top earners across the states in each region.

MEDICAL DOCTORS
NW – $ 301,000 GL - $ 303,000
W – $ 290,000 SE - $ 297,000
SW - $ 292,000 MA - $ 282,000
NC - $ 317,000 NE - $ 296,000
SC - $ 300,000

PHARMACISTS
NW - $ 125,850 GL - $ 115,160
W - $ 136,730 SE - $ 117,690
SW - $ 118,360 MA - $ 122,230
NC - $ 113,720 NE - $ 125,680
SC - $ 126,460

OPTOMETRISTS
NW - $ 126,200 GL - $ 113,880
W - $ 115,260 SE - $ 107,200
SW - $ 93,340 MA - $ 127,940
NC - $ 107,360 NE - $ 140,880
SC - $ 118,950

NURSES
NW- $ 75,350 GL - $ 64,430
W - $ 94,120 SE - $ 61,780
SW - $ 97,040 MA - $ 58,760
NC - $ 56,350 NE - $ 60,700
SC - $ 66,350

These figures are self-explanatory, we don’t need a PhD in mathematics or accounting to see the obvious, let us move over to the United Kingdom (UK), this country is, made up of Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We will compare the pay of medical doctors with that of pharmacists, physiotherapists and optometrists in these regions.

NB: Pay is average per year for top and lowest earners (medical doctors) and top earners (JOHESU)

GREAT BRITAIN
Medical doctors
Consultants - £ 82,000
Private practice - £ 103,000
Public - £ 60,000
Residents - £ 40,000

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 50,000
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 19,000
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 44,000

NORTHERN IRELAND
Medical doctors
Junior doctors - £ 34,500
Consultants - £ 84,000

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 33,344
Physiotherapists(experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,077
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 48,634

SCOTLAND
Medical doctors
Physicians - £ 67,317
Surgeons - £ 89,325

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,653
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 30,000
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 36,521

WALES
Medical doctors
Junior doctors - £ 35,000
Consultants - £ 84,641

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 39,417
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,035
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 42,147

Looking at what is being done in the land of the Queen that is attracting so many of well to do Nigerians, politicians and medical doctors, we can see without having a degree in mathematics one of the reasons why we flock that way, for your information, health sector budget in UK for 2018 is £ 124.7 Billion (# 1.7 trillion), another reason we take the leap.
This imbroglio has gone on for too long, we need to put an end to it, there is no where in Gods own world, that the proposed madness is taking place, this situation is taking its toll on all of us, we are Nigerians, we reside in Nigeria, we access healthcare in Nigeria, a group of people should not continue to hold us at ransom and be wasting our lives and the lives of our loved ones because of their own selfish immoral interests.
I am a medical doctor, I chose to be one, I enjoy being one, if I have a second chance at life I will be a medical doctor all over again, I will save as many lives as I can, that is who and what I am, I swore to the Hippocratic oath which you loathe.

DR FEMI OBAFEMI.

phemy2kme:
THE HIPPOCRATIC LOATHE – Flicking the switch

“Declare the past, diagnose the present, foretell the future.”
― Hippocrates

When you step into a room and flick a switch, you either create light or you create darkness, in this quagmire of unnecessary dark rancor let us flick the switch and create light.
International best practice is defined as” A program, activity or strategy that has worked within one organization and shows promise during its early stages for becoming a best practice with long-term sustainable impact. A promising practice must have some objective basis for claiming effectiveness and must have the potential for replication among other organizations”, meaning we will adopt an already developed and proven process or strategy and make it our way of life, in short copy and paste, or we set a precedence of chaos and hope others will copy it as international best practice exported from us to them with love.
Internationally, every professional working in the health sector apart from Medical Doctors and Nurses are referred to as “ALLIED HEALTH WORKERS” who are support staff to the aforementioned, locally in Nigeria they are referred to as “JOINT HEALTH SECTOR UNIONS” (JOHESU) that comprises the bulk of the work force save the Medical Doctors.
When you or your loved one goes to seek medical attention from qualified and well-trained personnel’s, a machinery is set in motion around you, which comprises these support staff and the medical personnel. The record staff opens a new case note for you or extract one you used in your previous visit, he passes this case note on to the nurse, who checks your vitals and gets you ready in the consulting/examination room for the Medical Doctor.
The Doctor asks you series of questions, your answers direct his train of thought, with a few differential diagnoses at the back of his mind, he examines you, which helps him to remove from or add to the list of diagnoses, to rule in or rule out options from this list, he orders for tests ranging from Imaging, body fluids examinations to tissue examinations.
These tests are carried out in different locations by medical doctors / JOHESU members, E.g A radiographer in radiology department will shoot the x-ray as he was trained to do, he will then pass the film, after developing it to the medical doctor in radiology department, who is a specialist to interpret the “picture” appropriately as he was trained to do, this radiographer and medical doctor only knows of your radiological report. You then proceed to the laboratory as directed by the medical doctor in the consulting room to chemical pathology laboratory, medical microbiology laboratory and haematology laboratory, different specialist medical doctors and laboratory technicians in these laboratories will run your body fluids and blood samples as they were trained to do, the medical doctors will write the reports and send same to the medical doctor in the consulting room, the doctors and the laboratory technicians are only privy to the reports obtained in their respective laboratories.
After all these, you will go back to the medical doctor in the consulting room with the gamut of reports, which will help the medical doctor to confirm the diagnosis he had on his mind or which will point him in another direction, after marrying your clinical presentation to the laboratory reports, he will make his choice of treatment, you will get an appropriate prescription detailing name of medication (drug), dosage of medication, mode of administration, frequency of usage and duration of usage of the drug. This is passed on to the pharmacist who will dispense the drugs, identify each one for you, explain mode of administration of each to you, often at times you will have to go back to the nurse for the administration of some of the medications, or to the medical doctor and some will be self-administered by you in your house, after which the records officer files your case note appropriately for subsequent usage, at the center of your care is the medical doctor in the consulting room holding all the pieces together and seeing the big picture, he is connecting all the units to give you a diagnosis and ultimately treatment, no one has the right or training to play this role save the medical doctor. Spending donkey years at the medical doctors’ elbow or shadowing him does not confer on anyone by default the right to play this role, unless you go into a university to study medicine as a course and swear the Hippocratic oath.
Doctors are responsible for protecting your personal information and data, hence the parlance, patient doctor confidentiality and not patient health worker confidentiality.
National Medical Association was founded in 1900 in the United States of America, while the counterpart Nigeria Medical Association was formed in 1951.
Following WWII, healthcare needs and demands increased, the Allied health workers was formed in 1967in the United States to support the work of medical doctors which will allow him concentrate more on diagnosing and shedding some weights to the support workers.
In 1976 the medical and health workers union of Nigeria was formed, which is a precursor to the hydra headed unequally yoked body, dubbed JOHESU.
It is very easy to become a medical doctor anywhere in the world, just meet the admission criteria, in Nigeria, you have to beat the JAMB/UTME cut off point, which Is usually steep, at this point no one clamors for “score parity”, “equity not equality”, everyone keeps mute and follows their chosen paths willfully or fatefully, after 1 year of general courses with other departments, the workload of medicine thereafter is something light but it is not for the faint hearted, in 2 years you finish 3 degree courses, that have students studying them independently for 5 years, following which you cross over to the clinicals where you earn 2 more degrees in 3 years, all these makes up the super degree MBBS (actually 4 degrees in 1).
After the 6 official years in school, 1-year internship and 1 year mandatory service to the fatherland, a medical doctor chooses his path, either he works as a medical officer or enroll for postgraduate study/service (residency), this takes another 6 years on the average of intense postgraduate studies, at the same time you are offering your service as a medical doctor (you are a graduate with a super degree, remember?) to the center where you are undergoing training, this chimera confuses the uninitiated who will call you, a student doctor (what a display of paucity of adequate cerebral functioning), following passing the prescribed professional examinations you become a specialist, you have invested on the average 14 years of your life in knowledge seeking and proper education as a medical doctor.
Let us create darkness on the call for “pay parity”, “equity not equality”, which is double standard anyway, with the definition of international best practice still fresh on our minds, let us turn our searchlights to the medical “eldorados” of this planet, to save time and space we will look at UK and USA.
USA is officially divided into 9 regions;
NC – north central, GL – great lakes, NW – north west, SC – south central, SE – south east, NE – north east, SW – south west, W – west, MA – mid Atlantic,
we will compare the pay of medical doctors with that of pharmacists, optometrists and nurses (they are the highest paid JOHESU units) in these regions.

NB: Pay is average per year for the top earners across the states in each region.

MEDICAL DOCTORS
NW – $ 301,000 GL - $ 303,000
W – $ 290,000 SE - $ 297,000
SW - $ 292,000 MA - $ 282,000
NC - $ 317,000 NE - $ 296,000
SC - $ 300,000

PHARMACISTS
NW - $ 125,850 GL - $ 115,160
W - $ 136,730 SE - $ 117,690
SW - $ 118,360 MA - $ 122,230
NC - $ 113,720 NE - $ 125,680
SC - $ 126,460

OPTOMETRISTS
NW - $ 126,200 GL - $ 113,880
W - $ 115,260 SE - $ 107,200
SW - $ 93,340 MA - $ 127,940
NC - $ 107,360 NE - $ 140,880
SC - $ 118,950

NURSES
NW- $ 75,350 GL - $ 64,430
W - $ 94,120 SE - $ 61,780
SW - $ 97,040 MA - $ 58,760
NC - $ 56,350 NE - $ 60,700
SC - $ 66,350

These figures are self-explanatory, we don’t need a PhD in mathematics or accounting to see the obvious, let us move over to the United Kingdom (UK), this country is, made up of Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We will compare the pay of medical doctors with that of pharmacists, physiotherapists and optometrists in these regions.

NB: Pay is average per year for top and lowest earners (medical doctors) and top earners (JOHESU)

GREAT BRITAIN
Medical doctors
Consultants - £ 82,000
Private practice - £ 103,000
Public - £ 60,000
Residents - £ 40,000

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 50,000
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 19,000
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 44,000

NORTHERN IRELAND
Medical doctors
Junior doctors - £ 34,500
Consultants - £ 84,000

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 33,344
Physiotherapists(experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,077
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 48,634

SCOTLAND
Medical doctors
Physicians - £ 67,317
Surgeons - £ 89,325

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,653
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 30,000
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 36,521

WALES
Medical doctors
Junior doctors - £ 35,000
Consultants - £ 84,641

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 39,417
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,035
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 42,147

Looking at what is being done in the land of the Queen that is attracting so many of well to do Nigerians, politicians and medical doctors, we can see without having a degree in mathematics one of the reasons why we flock that way, for your information, health sector budget in UK for 2018 is £ 124.7 Billion (# 1.7 trillion), another reason we take the leap.
This imbroglio has gone on for too long, we need to put an end to it, there is no where in Gods own world, that the proposed madness is taking place, this situation is taking its toll on all of us, we are Nigerians, we reside in Nigeria, we access healthcare in Nigeria, a group of people should not continue to hold us at ransom and be wasting our lives and the lives of our loved ones because of their own selfish immoral interests.
I am a medical doctor, I chose to be one, I enjoy being one, if I have a second chance at life I will be a medical doctor all over again, I will save as many lives as I can, that is who and what I am, I swore to the Hippocratic oath which you loathe.

DR FEMI OBAFEMI.

Pls read this article below in case you missed it and understand how WHO defined international best practices regarding medical practice in the world. Intl best practice is not defined by ILO, NMA and health ministry.

JOHESU AND NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT VS NMA HEALTH BATTLE: THIS IS THE CONCLUSION OF THE MATTER
By Fejiro Oliver
The equal right of all citizens to health, education, work, food, security, culture, science, and wellbeing – that is, the same rights we proclaimed when we began our struggle, in addition to those which emerge from our dreams of justice and equality for all inhabitants of our world – is what I wish for all. Fidel Castro
This is a long write-up for intellectuals who can research and not those who dwell in shallow arguments.
For two years, I purposely stayed away from writing as an individual on issues that bothered about the health sector in Nigeria, to enable me research on the true international best practices and come out with an informed and none bias position. Apart from education and defense, the most important aspect of a country is its health sector. Sadly enough, the sector in Nigeria has been bedeviled by animosity and fierce battle between the two prominent groups, namely; Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) and the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).
JOHESU consists of all workers in the hospitals apart from Physicians and Dentists who make up NMA. I have decided to skip the word ‘doctor’ for a reason, which will be explained later. Nigeria is currently shut down with death toll rising every twenty four hours since JOHESU embarked on their strike last week. Despite the Federal Government refusal to pay them April salaries, they are bent on not going to work, until their demands are met. The argument from both sides is reasonable, depending on the prism through which one views it.
JOHESU is insisting that the FG honors all the agreement it reached with them, especially as it has to do with allowing their members to reach consultancy level, upward review of the CONHESS salary as agreed with FG, retirement age at 65 and few others. NMA on the other hand believes that the increment in salary for JOHESU will place them at par. They have also fought some JOHESU professionals from attaining consultancy status as well as using the prefix ‘Doctor’ before their name.
First of all, who is a Doctor? The word was never a medical word from origin. It is a Latin word from 1300, which means “Church father,” from Old French doctour, from Medieval Latin doctor “religious teacher, adviser, scholar,” in classical Latin “teacher,” agent noun from docere “to show, teach, cause to know,” originally “make to appear right,” causative of decere “be seemly, fitting,” from PIE root dek- “to take, accept”, as defined by etymonline. When the art of healing came into serious practice, the word ‘Doctor’ was used to replace the word ‘leech’, which they were initially called.
It therefore brings us to the argument on those entitled to use the suffix ‘Dr’ before their names in the health sector. First of all, it’s an acceptable fact that no one went to school to study ‘doctoring’. Unlike Engineers who derived their title from their course of study, this is not entirely so in the health sector.
In the school of health or school of medicine, as it’s called in different universities, the courses are Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry, Nursing, Medical Rehabilitation or Physical Medicine, Radiography, Medical Laboratory and Optometry. None of these courses is called Doctoring. The word Doctor came to be associated with the art of healing in the medieval period and were initially called Physician and still called so till date. With the advent of Doctor of Philosophy which is the highest level associated with teaching, it later became ascribed to those saddled with the art of healing.
The question now bothers to who is a healer in the health profession and who is a paramedic; a degrading word that has been used many times by Nigerian Physicians to spite other medical workers, who retaliates by calling them Allopathic officers.
In line with international best practices, only the World Health Organisation (WHO) not World Medical Association and International Labor Organisation (ILO) can define the meaning of every profession. In listing structures for each worker, all professionals were listed as ‘Health Professionals’ and not ‘Medical Professionals’. They were divided into two health groups for easy recognition. The first group listed are: Medical Doctors (Generalist Medical Practitioners and Specialist Medical Practitioners), Nursing and Midwifery Professionals, Traditional and Complementary Medicine Professionals, ***Paramedical Practitioners and Veterinarians.
The second group listed Dentists, Pharmacists, Environmental and Occupational Health and Hygiene Professionals, Physiotherapists, Dieticians and Nutritionists, Audiologists and Speech Therapists, Optometrists and Ophthalmic Opticians and Health Professionals Not Elsewhere Classified.
Note that Dentists which is a member of NMA is in the second category and Paramedics in the first category, according to International best practices that we like to flout.
Let us take a look at WHO definition of these core workers in the health sector.
According to WHO, ‘a Generalist medical doctors (including family and primary care doctors) diagnose, TREAT and prevent illness, disease, injury, and other physical and mental impairments and maintain general health in humans through application of the principles and procedures of modern medicine. They plan, supervise and evaluate the implementation of care and treatment plans by other health care providers. They do not limit their practice to certain disease categories or methods of treatment, and may assume responsibility for the provision of continuing and comprehensive medical care to individuals, families and communities’.
Same WHO notes that ‘Nursing professionals provide TREATMENT, support and care services for people who are in need of nursing care due to the effects of ageing, injury, illness or other physical or mental impairment, or potential risks to health, according to the practice and standards of modern nursing. They assume responsibility for the planning and management of the care of patients, including the supervision of other health care workers, working autonomously or in teams with medical doctors and others in the practical application of preventive and curative measures in clinical and community settings’.
Going down to traditional level, WHO was direct when it stated that ‘Traditional and complementary medicine professionals examine patients and prevent and TREAT illness, disease, injury and other physical, mental and psychosocial ailments by applying knowledge, skills and practices acquired through extensive study of the theories and experiences originating in specific cultures. They research, develop and implement treatment plans using applications such as acupuncture, ayurvedic, homoeopathic and herbal medicine’.
For Dentists, the world body noted that ‘Dentists (including dental surgeons and related) diagnose, TREAT and prevent diseases, injuries and abnormalities of the teeth, mouth, jaws and associated tissues by applying the principles and procedures of modern dentistry. They use a broad range of specialized diagnostic, surgical and other techniques to promote and restore oral health’.
According to its supreme definition, ‘Pharmacists store, preserve, compound and dispense medicinal products. They counsel on the proper use and adverse effects of drugs and medicines following prescriptions issued by medical doctors and other health professionals. They contribute to researching, testing, preparing, prescribing and monitoring medicinal therapies for optimizing human health’.
For Physiotherapists, WHO didn’t mince word saying that ‘Physiotherapists assess, plan and implement rehabilitative programs that improve or restore human motor functions, maximize movement ability, relieve pain syndromes, and treat or prevent physical challenges associated with injuries, diseases and other impairments. They apply a broad range of physical therapies and techniques such as movement, ultrasound, heating, laser and other techniques. They may develop and implement programmes for screening and prevention of common physical ailments and disorders. ILO in classifying their job stated that “Physiotherapists and related associate professionals TREAT disorders of bones, muscles and parts of the circulatory or the nervous system by manipulative methods, and ultrasound, heating, laser or similar techniques, or apply physiotherapy and related therapies as part of the treatment for the physically disabled, mentally ill or unbalanced.
For Optometrists, the world body says Optometrists and ophthalmic opticians provide diagnosis, management and TREATMENT services for disorders of the eyes and visual system. They counsel and advise on eye care and safety, and prescribe optical aids or other therapies for visual disturbance.
While this may sound as a thesis, I will leave out what the sacred definition of WHO and ILO gave to the two eyes of medicine, notably Radiography and Medical Laboratory. The reader can Google it up.
By these definitions, five professions TREAT sicknesses and disorders and one provides the drugs or body gel they prescribe, while two gives a clearer picture of the diagnosis through tests and imaging.
They are General Practitioner called Medical Doctor, Traditional or complimentary medicine practitioners/
Homeopathy, Dentists, Nurses, Optometrists and Physiotherapists. Nursing being a unique and distinct profession cannot be called Doctors, but the rest whose primary duties is to diagnose treat and certify fit can be called Doctor if their regulatory body so wish.
On consultancy status, it is criminal for a profession to demand for such almighty position simply because of the years spent in service and not by merit. It’s akin to saying a lecturer can rise to the level of Professorship without studying to get PhD. This is where I disagree with JOHESU. Medical Doctors who are consultants didn’t jump the rope. They went through the rigors of residency training, became fellows and merited it.
Medical practice is not law that is determined by the years of practice which leads to the award of SAN. It is study, quest to break medical grounds and solve the everyday health challenges that the world faces. No amount of experience can totally give clinicians that except devotion to knowledge, which is gained through the appropriate postgraduate school or colleges.
It is however unjust for the current disparity in salaries of the two warring groups. Whoever separated the salary structure into CONMESS and CONHESS is the common enemy that we should be fighting today.
It’s absurd and ridiculous that a House Officer will earn higher than a working class Nurse or any other core medical practitioners, when the difference in study is one year. Only a specialist GP should be allowed to earn more than any other clinician, who refuses to also specialize in his/her own field.
The FG should as a matter of urgency make all health workers one salary structure, and their wages determined by level of qualification and specialty as operated globally. The Ministry of Health should be headed by hospitals administrators and not physicians, just as the hospitals should not also be headed by a Dentist or Nurse.
For heaven sake, it’s a profit making venture and not a professional body that the Medical Doctors heading it have turned it to. Only the Chief Medical Advisory Committee (CMAC) head should be a Physician while the Deputy CMAC should be from other clinical department like Medical Laboratory or Pharmacy.
International best practices that we scream always have proven that the top countries in medical field do not have any health worker as their Minister or Head of health sector. Oh, what about the almighty WHO that defines health, the head is not also a medical doctor, but a biologist. If WHO was a Nigerian union, it’s crystal clear that there would have been strike if a Nurse is appointed the head. What then are we saying?
As for JOHESU, calling off the strike now will forever bring your union to doom. Let the government stop salaries till next year, but do not give in to threats and blackmail. Your requests apart from ‘consultancy by years of service’ are just, and Nigerians are solidly behind you, even though we are the ones that ultimately feel the pain. There’s unity in strength and this is the time to be united. The battle is not against NMA but the Federal Government who reserves the right to implement your demands.
Every profession is independent of each other and this right to decency of work cannot be taken from you, not now, tomorrow or in the future.
To be continued…
These little things matter…
Fejiro Oliver, an Investigative Journalist, Media Consultant and Human Rights Activist is also the Co-Convener of Coalition of Human Rights Defender (CHORD) and can be reached on +2348022050733 (SMS ONLY) or secretsreporters@gmail.com. Engage him on twitter on @fejirooliver86.

phemy2kme:
THE HIPPOCRATIC LOATHE – Flicking the switch

“Declare the past, diagnose the present, foretell the future.”
― Hippocrates

When you step into a room and flick a switch, you either create light or you create darkness, in this quagmire of unnecessary dark rancor let us flick the switch and create light.
International best practice is defined as” A program, activity or strategy that has worked within one organization and shows promise during its early stages for becoming a best practice with long-term sustainable impact. A promising practice must have some objective basis for claiming effectiveness and must have the potential for replication among other organizations”, meaning we will adopt an already developed and proven process or strategy and make it our way of life, in short copy and paste, or we set a precedence of chaos and hope others will copy it as international best practice exported from us to them with love.
Internationally, every professional working in the health sector apart from Medical Doctors and Nurses are referred to as “ALLIED HEALTH WORKERS” who are support staff to the aforementioned, locally in Nigeria they are referred to as “JOINT HEALTH SECTOR UNIONS” (JOHESU) that comprises the bulk of the work force save the Medical Doctors.
When you or your loved one goes to seek medical attention from qualified and well-trained personnel’s, a machinery is set in motion around you, which comprises these support staff and the medical personnel. The record staff opens a new case note for you or extract one you used in your previous visit, he passes this case note on to the nurse, who checks your vitals and gets you ready in the consulting/examination room for the Medical Doctor.
The Doctor asks you series of questions, your answers direct his train of thought, with a few differential diagnoses at the back of his mind, he examines you, which helps him to remove from or add to the list of diagnoses, to rule in or rule out options from this list, he orders for tests ranging from Imaging, body fluids examinations to tissue examinations.
These tests are carried out in different locations by medical doctors / JOHESU members, E.g A radiographer in radiology department will shoot the x-ray as he was trained to do, he will then pass the film, after developing it to the medical doctor in radiology department, who is a specialist to interpret the “picture” appropriately as he was trained to do, this radiographer and medical doctor only knows of your radiological report. You then proceed to the laboratory as directed by the medical doctor in the consulting room to chemical pathology laboratory, medical microbiology laboratory and haematology laboratory, different specialist medical doctors and laboratory technicians in these laboratories will run your body fluids and blood samples as they were trained to do, the medical doctors will write the reports and send same to the medical doctor in the consulting room, the doctors and the laboratory technicians are only privy to the reports obtained in their respective laboratories.
After all these, you will go back to the medical doctor in the consulting room with the gamut of reports, which will help the medical doctor to confirm the diagnosis he had on his mind or which will point him in another direction, after marrying your clinical presentation to the laboratory reports, he will make his choice of treatment, you will get an appropriate prescription detailing name of medication (drug), dosage of medication, mode of administration, frequency of usage and duration of usage of the drug. This is passed on to the pharmacist who will dispense the drugs, identify each one for you, explain mode of administration of each to you, often at times you will have to go back to the nurse for the administration of some of the medications, or to the medical doctor and some will be self-administered by you in your house, after which the records officer files your case note appropriately for subsequent usage, at the center of your care is the medical doctor in the consulting room holding all the pieces together and seeing the big picture, he is connecting all the units to give you a diagnosis and ultimately treatment, no one has the right or training to play this role save the medical doctor. Spending donkey years at the medical doctors’ elbow or shadowing him does not confer on anyone by default the right to play this role, unless you go into a university to study medicine as a course and swear the Hippocratic oath.
Doctors are responsible for protecting your personal information and data, hence the parlance, patient doctor confidentiality and not patient health worker confidentiality.
National Medical Association was founded in 1900 in the United States of America, while the counterpart Nigeria Medical Association was formed in 1951.
Following WWII, healthcare needs and demands increased, the Allied health workers was formed in 1967in the United States to support the work of medical doctors which will allow him concentrate more on diagnosing and shedding some weights to the support workers.
In 1976 the medical and health workers union of Nigeria was formed, which is a precursor to the hydra headed unequally yoked body, dubbed JOHESU.
It is very easy to become a medical doctor anywhere in the world, just meet the admission criteria, in Nigeria, you have to beat the JAMB/UTME cut off point, which Is usually steep, at this point no one clamors for “score parity”, “equity not equality”, everyone keeps mute and follows their chosen paths willfully or fatefully, after 1 year of general courses with other departments, the workload of medicine thereafter is something light but it is not for the faint hearted, in 2 years you finish 3 degree courses, that have students studying them independently for 5 years, following which you cross over to the clinicals where you earn 2 more degrees in 3 years, all these makes up the super degree MBBS (actually 4 degrees in 1).
After the 6 official years in school, 1-year internship and 1 year mandatory service to the fatherland, a medical doctor chooses his path, either he works as a medical officer or enroll for postgraduate study/service (residency), this takes another 6 years on the average of intense postgraduate studies, at the same time you are offering your service as a medical doctor (you are a graduate with a super degree, remember?) to the center where you are undergoing training, this chimera confuses the uninitiated who will call you, a student doctor (what a display of paucity of adequate cerebral functioning), following passing the prescribed professional examinations you become a specialist, you have invested on the average 14 years of your life in knowledge seeking and proper education as a medical doctor.
Let us create darkness on the call for “pay parity”, “equity not equality”, which is double standard anyway, with the definition of international best practice still fresh on our minds, let us turn our searchlights to the medical “eldorados” of this planet, to save time and space we will look at UK and USA.
USA is officially divided into 9 regions;
NC – north central, GL – great lakes, NW – north west, SC – south central, SE – south east, NE – north east, SW – south west, W – west, MA – mid Atlantic,
we will compare the pay of medical doctors with that of pharmacists, optometrists and nurses (they are the highest paid JOHESU units) in these regions.

NB: Pay is average per year for the top earners across the states in each region.

MEDICAL DOCTORS
NW – $ 301,000 GL - $ 303,000
W – $ 290,000 SE - $ 297,000
SW - $ 292,000 MA - $ 282,000
NC - $ 317,000 NE - $ 296,000
SC - $ 300,000

PHARMACISTS
NW - $ 125,850 GL - $ 115,160
W - $ 136,730 SE - $ 117,690
SW - $ 118,360 MA - $ 122,230
NC - $ 113,720 NE - $ 125,680
SC - $ 126,460

OPTOMETRISTS
NW - $ 126,200 GL - $ 113,880
W - $ 115,260 SE - $ 107,200
SW - $ 93,340 MA - $ 127,940
NC - $ 107,360 NE - $ 140,880
SC - $ 118,950

NURSES
NW- $ 75,350 GL - $ 64,430
W - $ 94,120 SE - $ 61,780
SW - $ 97,040 MA - $ 58,760
NC - $ 56,350 NE - $ 60,700
SC - $ 66,350

These figures are self-explanatory, we don’t need a PhD in mathematics or accounting to see the obvious, let us move over to the United Kingdom (UK), this country is, made up of Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We will compare the pay of medical doctors with that of pharmacists, physiotherapists and optometrists in these regions.

NB: Pay is average per year for top and lowest earners (medical doctors) and top earners (JOHESU)

GREAT BRITAIN
Medical doctors
Consultants - £ 82,000
Private practice - £ 103,000
Public - £ 60,000
Residents - £ 40,000

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 50,000
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 19,000
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 44,000

NORTHERN IRELAND
Medical doctors
Junior doctors - £ 34,500
Consultants - £ 84,000

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 33,344
Physiotherapists(experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,077
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 48,634

SCOTLAND
Medical doctors
Physicians - £ 67,317
Surgeons - £ 89,325

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,653
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 30,000
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 36,521

WALES
Medical doctors
Junior doctors - £ 35,000
Consultants - £ 84,641

Pharmacists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 39,417
Physiotherapists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 38,035
Optometrists (experienced)
All sectors - £ 42,147

Looking at what is being done in the land of the Queen that is attracting so many of well to do Nigerians, politicians and medical doctors, we can see without having a degree in mathematics one of the reasons why we flock that way, for your information, health sector budget in UK for 2018 is £ 124.7 Billion (# 1.7 trillion), another reason we take the leap.
This imbroglio has gone on for too long, we need to put an end to it, there is no where in Gods own world, that the proposed madness is taking place, this situation is taking its toll on all of us, we are Nigerians, we reside in Nigeria, we access healthcare in Nigeria, a group of people should not continue to hold us at ransom and be wasting our lives and the lives of our loved ones because of their own selfish immoral interests.
I am a medical doctor, I chose to be one, I enjoy being one, if I have a second chance at life I will be a medical doctor all over again, I will save as many lives as I can, that is who and what I am, I swore to the Hippocratic oath which you loathe.

DR FEMI OBAFEMI.

re the radiologist/pathologist a supporting staff too? ;since dey aint holding all d piece of info on d pt to come up with a diagnosis as all dey do is interpretation of test results d consulting med requests ; and hence dey shld be as 'useless' (a claim by meds docs ) as oda health professionals making up JOHESU. if dis writeup is subjected to logical reasoning, it fails to prove itself true.

Thanks18:
JOHESU AND NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT VS NMA HEALTH BATTLE: THIS IS THE CONCLUSION OF THE MATTER
By Fejiro Oliver
The equal right of all citizens to health, education, work, food, security, culture, science, and wellbeing – that is, the same rights we proclaimed when we began our struggle, in addition to those which emerge from our dreams of justice and equality for all inhabitants of our world – is what I wish for all. Fidel Castro
This is a long write-up for intellectuals who can research and not those who dwell in shallow arguments.
For two years, I purposely stayed away from writing as an individual on issues that bothered about the health sector in Nigeria, to enable me research on the true international best practices and come out with an informed and none bias position. Apart from education and defense, the most important aspect of a country is its health sector. Sadly enough, the sector in Nigeria has been bedeviled by animosity and fierce battle between the two prominent groups, namely; Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) and the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).
JOHESU consists of all workers in the hospitals apart from Physicians and Dentists who make up NMA. I have decided to skip the word ‘doctor’ for a reason, which will be explained later. Nigeria is currently shut down with death toll rising every twenty four hours since JOHESU embarked on their strike last week. Despite the Federal Government refusal to pay them April salaries, they are bent on not going to work, until their demands are met. The argument from both sides is reasonable, depending on the prism through which one views it.
JOHESU is insisting that the FG honors all the agreement it reached with them, especially as it has to do with allowing their members to reach consultancy level, upward review of the CONHESS salary as agreed with FG, retirement age at 65 and few others. NMA on the other hand believes that the increment in salary for JOHESU will place them at par. They have also fought some JOHESU professionals from attaining consultancy status as well as using the prefix ‘Doctor’ before their name.
First of all, who is a Doctor? The word was never a medical word from origin. It is a Latin word from 1300, which means “Church father,” from Old French doctour, from Medieval Latin doctor “religious teacher, adviser, scholar,” in classical Latin “teacher,” agent noun from docere “to show, teach, cause to know,” originally “make to appear right,” causative of decere “be seemly, fitting,” from PIE root dek- “to take, accept”, as defined by etymonline. When the art of healing came into serious practice, the word ‘Doctor’ was used to replace the word ‘leech’, which they were initially called.
It therefore brings us to the argument on those entitled to use the suffix ‘Dr’ before their names in the health sector. First of all, it’s an acceptable fact that no one went to school to study ‘doctoring’. Unlike Engineers who derived their title from their course of study, this is not entirely so in the health sector.
In the school of health or school of medicine, as it’s called in different universities, the courses are Medicine, Pharmacy, Dentistry, Nursing, Medical Rehabilitation or Physical Medicine, Radiography, Medical Laboratory and Optometry. None of these courses is called Doctoring. The word Doctor came to be associated with the art of healing in the medieval period and were initially called Physician and still called so till date. With the advent of Doctor of Philosophy which is the highest level associated with teaching, it later became ascribed to those saddled with the art of healing.
The question now bothers to who is a healer in the health profession and who is a paramedic; a degrading word that has been used many times by Nigerian Physicians to spite other medical workers, who retaliates by calling them Allopathic officers.
In line with international best practices, only the World Health Organisation (WHO) not World Medical Association and International Labor Organisation (ILO) can define the meaning of every profession. In listing structures for each worker, all professionals were listed as ‘Health Professionals’ and not ‘Medical Professionals’. They were divided into two health groups for easy recognition. The first group listed are: Medical Doctors (Generalist Medical Practitioners and Specialist Medical Practitioners), Nursing and Midwifery Professionals, Traditional and Complementary Medicine Professionals, ***Paramedical Practitioners and Veterinarians.
The second group listed Dentists, Pharmacists, Environmental and Occupational Health and Hygiene Professionals, Physiotherapists, Dieticians and Nutritionists, Audiologists and Speech Therapists, Optometrists and Ophthalmic Opticians and Health Professionals Not Elsewhere Classified.
Note that Dentists which is a member of NMA is in the second category and Paramedics in the first category, according to International best practices that we like to flout.
Let us take a look at WHO definition of these core workers in the health sector.
According to WHO, ‘a Generalist medical doctors (including family and primary care doctors) diagnose, TREAT and prevent illness, disease, injury, and other physical and mental impairments and maintain general health in humans through application of the principles and procedures of modern medicine. They plan, supervise and evaluate the implementation of care and treatment plans by other health care providers. They do not limit their practice to certain disease categories or methods of treatment, and may assume responsibility for the provision of continuing and comprehensive medical care to individuals, families and communities’.
Same WHO notes that ‘Nursing professionals provide TREATMENT, support and care services for people who are in need of nursing care due to the effects of ageing, injury, illness or other physical or mental impairment, or potential risks to health, according to the practice and standards of modern nursing. They assume responsibility for the planning and management of the care of patients, including the supervision of other health care workers, working autonomously or in teams with medical doctors and others in the practical application of preventive and curative measures in clinical and community settings’.
Going down to traditional level, WHO was direct when it stated that ‘Traditional and complementary medicine professionals examine patients and prevent and TREAT illness, disease, injury and other physical, mental and psychosocial ailments by applying knowledge, skills and practices acquired through extensive study of the theories and experiences originating in specific cultures. They research, develop and implement treatment plans using applications such as acupuncture, ayurvedic, homoeopathic and herbal medicine’.
For Dentists, the world body noted that ‘Dentists (including dental surgeons and related) diagnose, TREAT and prevent diseases, injuries and abnormalities of the teeth, mouth, jaws and associated tissues by applying the principles and procedures of modern dentistry. They use a broad range of specialized diagnostic, surgical and other techniques to promote and restore oral health’.
According to its supreme definition, ‘Pharmacists store, preserve, compound and dispense medicinal products. They counsel on the proper use and adverse effects of drugs and medicines following prescriptions issued by medical doctors and other health professionals. They contribute to researching, testing, preparing, prescribing and monitoring medicinal therapies for optimizing human health’.
For Physiotherapists, WHO didn’t mince word saying that ‘Physiotherapists assess, plan and implement rehabilitative programs that improve or restore human motor functions, maximize movement ability, relieve pain syndromes, and treat or prevent physical challenges associated with injuries, diseases and other impairments. They apply a broad range of physical therapies and techniques such as movement, ultrasound, heating, laser and other techniques. They may develop and implement programmes for screening and prevention of common physical ailments and disorders. ILO in classifying their job stated that “Physiotherapists and related associate professionals TREAT disorders of bones, muscles and parts of the circulatory or the nervous system by manipulative methods, and ultrasound, heating, laser or similar techniques, or apply physiotherapy and related therapies as part of the treatment for the physically disabled, mentally ill or unbalanced.
For Optometrists, the world body says Optometrists and ophthalmic opticians provide diagnosis, management and TREATMENT services for disorders of the eyes and visual system. They counsel and advise on eye care and safety, and prescribe optical aids or other therapies for visual disturbance.
While this may sound as a thesis, I will leave out what the sacred definition of WHO and ILO gave to the two eyes of medicine, notably Radiography and Medical Laboratory. The reader can Google it up.
By these definitions, five professions TREAT sicknesses and disorders and one provides the drugs or body gel they prescribe, while two gives a clearer picture of the diagnosis through tests and imaging.
They are General Practitioner called Medical Doctor, Traditional or complimentary medicine practitioners/
Homeopathy, Dentists, Nurses, Optometrists and Physiotherapists. Nursing being a unique and distinct profession cannot be called Doctors, but the rest whose primary duties is to diagnose treat and certify fit can be called Doctor if their regulatory body so wish.
On consultancy status, it is criminal for a profession to demand for such almighty position simply because of the years spent in service and not by merit. It’s akin to saying a lecturer can rise to the level of Professorship without studying to get PhD. This is where I disagree with JOHESU. Medical Doctors who are consultants didn’t jump the rope. They went through the rigors of residency training, became fellows and merited it.
Medical practice is not law that is determined by the years of practice which leads to the award of SAN. It is study, quest to break medical grounds and solve the everyday health challenges that the world faces. No amount of experience can totally give clinicians that except devotion to knowledge, which is gained through the appropriate postgraduate school or colleges.
It is however unjust for the current disparity in salaries of the two warring groups. Whoever separated the salary structure into CONMESS and CONHESS is the common enemy that we should be fighting today.
It’s absurd and ridiculous that a House Officer will earn higher than a working class Nurse or any other core medical practitioners, when the difference in study is one year. Only a specialist GP should be allowed to earn more than any other clinician, who refuses to also specialize in his/her own field.
The FG should as a matter of urgency make all health workers one salary structure, and their wages determined by level of qualification and specialty as operated globally. The Ministry of Health should be headed by hospitals administrators and not physicians, just as the hospitals should not also be headed by a Dentist or Nurse.
For heaven sake, it’s a profit making venture and not a professional body that the Medical Doctors heading it have turned it to. Only the Chief Medical Advisory Committee (CMAC) head should be a Physician while the Deputy CMAC should be from other clinical department like Medical Laboratory or Pharmacy.
International best practices that we scream always have proven that the top countries in medical field do not have any health worker as their Minister or Head of health sector. Oh, what about the almighty WHO that defines health, the head is not also a medical doctor, but a biologist. If WHO was a Nigerian union, it’s crystal clear that there would have been strike if a Nurse is appointed the head. What then are we saying?
As for JOHESU, calling off the strike now will forever bring your union to doom. Let the government stop salaries till next year, but do not give in to threats and blackmail. Your requests apart from ‘consultancy by years of service’ are just, and Nigerians are solidly behind you, even though we are the ones that ultimately feel the pain. There’s unity in strength and this is the time to be united. The battle is not against NMA but the Federal Government who reserves the right to implement your demands.
Every profession is independent of each other and this right to decency of work cannot be taken from you, not now, tomorrow or in the future.
To be continued…
These little things matter…
Fejiro Oliver, an Investigative Journalist, Media Consultant and Human Rights Activist is also the Co-Convener of Coalition of Human Rights Defender (CHORD) and can be reached on +2348022050733 (SMS ONLY) or secretsreporters@gmail.com. Engage him on twitter on @fejirooliver86.

dont mind them; na to dey shout international best practice as if their eyes re blind as to see how other health professionals med drs here claim to be useless practice abroad.

Doctors will survive in Nigeria no matter the recalcitrance of idiots.

TempoJames:
Doctors will survive in Nigeria no matter the recalcitrance of idiots.

other health professionals wld survive too. how do u relate with other health care professionals in the health institution u wrk? I sense much hate in ur write-ups

optm:
other health professionals wld survive too. how do u relate with other health care professionals in the health institution u wrk? I sense much hate in ur write-ups

The hate began when a pharmacist leaves his/her billion naira worth pharmaceutical firm and tryna head the hospital, when a nurse wants to head doctors, when a medlab scientist wants to head a pathologist, when a radiographer wants to head a radiologist , when a physiotherapist wants to be the CMD. Who started the hate? Idiots!
I am very sure a pharmacist wouldn't like to be paid same as nurses yet they want to be doctors. Hippocrytes!

Thanks18:


pls get your fact straight JOHESU national body in the press briefing yesterday has relaxed the strike in Lagos and Yobe states as appreciation to the state governments for meeting their demands. Your type was the reason while the great Ikemba once said: "Having a dialogue with my country men is like having a dialogue with the deaf; it requires a great deal of repetition, a great deal of shouting and a great deal of gesticulation. In spite of all these efforts, you still run the risk of being misunderstood". So disobeying court injunctions is now a heroic act abi. This questions that you are absolutely arrogant and uncivilized with your sense of judgement doctored, beclouded with petty sentiments and illiteracy. If the great POTUS will obey a high court injunction to drop his famous travel ban, it is a great lesson to be learnt that the hallmark of civilization is law and order and civility. Mr, your comments in this thread shows you are either deaf, daft or purely an illiterate.

Yes I'm deaf, daft and illiterate but I will be the one to conduct your autopsy after you might have died from hunger.
Cause of death will be: Hunger secondary to Johesu strike and insurbodination.