The Benue University Teaching Hospital (BUTH) is facing one of its worse times at this crucial time of the tight against Covid-19.
This is because the management and medical doctors are at logger heads over the alleged sack of over 30 resident doctors of the hospital.
The management of the hospital, findings indicated, sacked the resident doctors because, according to them, their residency period had expired.
In a press statement, Chairman, Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), BUTH branch, Dr. Onyewuchi Amina Japheth, said that the association had given the management 21 days to withdraw the sack letters, and that failure to do so, it would have no option than to embark on indefinite strike.
“The world is at a standstill today as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. The world over, countries are putting together measures to ensure that they are ready to fight the pandemic.
“Due to the way the disease is transmitted, people are advised to stay at home. Government’s have shut down public places, markets, offices and schools in order to curtail the virus.
“On the other hand, while everywhere is being shut down, hospitals have remained open and health workers mobilized to take care for the sick people during this period.
“Due to the seriousness of the situation, retired doctors have been forced out of retirement to return to work to save humanity.”
Dr. Amina Japhet lamented that, “the management has given over 30 doctors sack letters; have rescinded some letters and have also upheld others in a haphazard and subjective manner that doesn’t not just follow the laws regulating the service of resident doctors in Nigeria, but is also a disservice to the suffering people of Benue State.”
While saying that the management of the hospital is economical with the truth on alleged expiration of the tenure of the resident doctors, the resident doctors said: “Our doctors have their training stagnated (some for over 3 years) by the management, only to be issued sack letters that their time is done, when it was the fault of the management who refused to release them for those postings.
“Also, management have refused to take into account the periods when some departments did not have/ lost accreditation and resident doctors were not able to go for exams.
“All the lost time, the management has factored into their purported six-year residency program.”
