The Kwara State government is facing a significant shortage of medical personnel in its public hospitals due to the ongoing effects of the ‘Japa’ syndrome, which has seen many doctors and nurses leave the country in search of better opportunities abroad.
According to Abdulrahman Malik, the Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Hospital Management Board, the state currently has only 89 doctors working in its public healthcare facilities, despite the need for at least 180 to 200 medical practitioners.
This crisis has been attributed to the widespread emigration of healthcare professionals, often referred to as the ‘Japa’ syndrome, where individuals, particularly doctors and nurses, leave Nigeria for overseas opportunities.
Malik noted that while the state government has been ready to recruit more doctors, most are unwilling to join due to the unappealing conditions in the state’s health sector, especially in rural areas.
However, Malik shared that there had been a slight improvement recently, as the number of available doctors rose from 86 to 89 after three doctors returned to the service following the introduction of a new salary structure. The government is actively working to address this issue by offering enhanced salaries and facilities to attract doctors to the state, particularly in underserved rural regions.
In addition to this, the state has launched an intern nurses programme to help address the shortage of trained nurses, many of whom have also left for foreign countries. The government hopes that this initiative will train a new generation of nurses to fill the gaps left by those who emigrated.
