Ondo resident doctors begin two weeks warning strike

Members of the Association of Resident Doctors at the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, have begun a two-week warning strike over dearth of personnel in the hospital.

It was gathered that the doctors shut down services at the hospital after the association’s general meeting.

The president of the ARD Owo FMC, Dr Olaopa Gideon, said the strike action was inevitable as they were working “under dire stressful conditions”.

According to him, there were only 80 resident doctors and health officers currently in the employment of the hospital and no employment has been carried out in the hospital since 2018.

He said, “But now one person is doing the job of five persons. We have been on this issue since last year. The situation keeps getting worst because a lot of people are leaving the system.

“There has not been any employment in the FMC Owo, since 2018. Employment of additional 200 doctors and health officers will solve the problem. They are also not paying for our extra work. We are doing duty call every day.”

In a communique issued at the end of the meeting, the aggrieved doctors also mentioned the issue of lack of befitting and secured accommodation for their colleagues working at the hospital’s annex in Akure.

The communique read, “We implore the management and all relevant offices of the Federal Government to ensure the employment of the resident doctors and House Officers to the hospital to relieve the severe shortage of manpower and overwhelming work load being faced by our members in the hospital.

“The Association can no longer bear the burnouts being experienced by its members and requests that recruitment of resident doctors and House Officers be commenced in earnest.

“The management should provide a befitting accommodation fortified with requisite amenities for those currently being posted to Akure Annex and that the association executives should certify the standard of accommodation before acceptance.”