At least 85 per cent of Nigerian doctors are planning to leave the country to seek greener pastures

This is according to the data obtained from the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors.

The report also showed that the preferred countries for immigration intentions are the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

The NARD members are of House Officers, Registrars, Senior Registrars, and Medical Officers below the level of Principal Medical Officers.

Speaking with our correspondent, the President of the association, Dr Emeka, said if the government did not take steps to address the ongoing brain drain in the country, the situation will get worse in the health sector.

“When we are saying these things, it looks as if it’s a joke. Mobility of labour is acceptable anywhere and what the government should do is to address the root causes of the immigration of doctors, as long as they don’t address it, when they see better opportunities out there, they will want to go there.

“It’s about the choices people make about themselves when they think that the government is not taking care of them. The government needs to improve on the things we have highlighted to reduce the brain drain,” he said.

He noted that as of October 2022, there were only 10,000 resident doctors in the country.

“Five months after, and we don’t have any reason to suggest that there is a downward scale of doctors migrating, if anything should be, it should be an increment in the immigration because nothing essentially has changed in terms of the working condition, infrastructure, security and all that,” he added.

Going by this figure, it means that 8,500 resident doctors plan to leave the country.

The 2023 macroeconomic outlook report released by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group recently said that aside from the considerable health infrastructural gap, Nigeria has lost many medical professionals to brain drain, leading to personnel inadequacy in the health sector.

The report said, “One of the major factors inhibiting Nigeria’s economic development has been the brain drain and knowledge gap in human capital. Knowledge as a significant driver of economies of scale can be increased by investing in education and providing better health services, which is the nation’s human capital formation.

“An equipped labour force, a stable economic environment, a thriving private sector, and robust social welfare programmes are crucial in attaining Shared Prosperity in Nigeria.”

Rolings:
Ungrateful lots
Unpatriotic folks
They just game the Nigerian government.
They got cheap medical education and will rather use it for another country.....why didnt they go to study the medidcine in europe or america....they wont because they cant afford it.
The didnt complain about ill equiped medical schools and teaching hospitals while training only to jump on the next plane to countries where they couldnt afford to study Medicine.....
Before anyone says rubbish....... doctors that want to practice in USA should go there for their studies if they can afford it not take advantage of the subsidized medical education in Nigeria and thereafter run away......Government subsidized it so many people can be trained to be useful to the country.

PresidentAtiku:
Everyday I keep praying that this devilish party called APC shouldn’t complete the destruction of Nigeria.

I have never seen this much desire to leave Nigeria

nairalee:
I cannot forget when Chris Ngige (Minister of Labour) said they are free to go and that we have more than enough doctors in Nigeria. What has changed? This is what you get when you have an ineffective government with senseless officials

Rolings:
Ungrateful lots
Unpatriotic folks
They just game the Nigerian government.
They got cheap medical education and will rather use it for another country.....why didnt they go to study the medidcine in europe or america....they wont because they cant afford it.
The didnt complain about ill equiped medical schools and teaching hospitals while training only to jump on the next plane to countries where they couldnt afford to study Medicine.....
Before anyone says rubbish....... doctors that want to practice in USA should go there for their studies if they can afford it not take advantage of the subsidized medical education in Nigeria and thereafter run away......Government subsidized it so many people can be trained to be useful to the country.

Freshtruth:
APC haa finish this country

Rolings:
Ungrateful lots
Unpatriotic folks
They just game the Nigerian government.
They got cheap medical education and will rather use it for another country.....why didnt they go to study the medidcine in europe or america....they wont because they cant afford it.
The didnt complain about ill equiped medical schools and teaching hospitals while training only to jump on the next plane to countries where they couldnt afford to study Medicine.....
Before anyone says rubbish....... doctors that want to practice in USA should go there for their studies if they can afford it not take advantage of the subsidized medical education in Nigeria and thereafter run away......Government subsidized it so many people can be trained to be useful to the country.

PresidentAtiku:
what if government decides to govern well? Why not ask for that rather than blaming the innocent doctors as if you have them scholarship
😒😏😒😏