Association of General Private Nursing Practitioners of Nigeria have called on government at all levels to prioritize the welfare and development of nurses in the healthcare system, emphasizing their critical role in delivering quality healthcare to the public.
This Statement was made during 14th Annual General Meeting/National Scientific Conference of Association of Private Nursing Practitioners of Nigeria tagged “Nurses’ Education, Economics and Political Advancement in Nigeria: Challenges and the way forward” held at Otunba Subomi Hall University of Ibadan, Ibadan.
Declaring the conference open the Executive Governor of Oyo State, His Excellency Engr. Oluseyi Makinde who was represent By Commissioner for Health, Dr. (Mrs.) Adewumi Ajetumobi who was also represent in absentia by Director of Secondary Health and Training, Dr. Adekunle Aremu said, education and knowledge is dynamic thing are changing by the day.
According to him, “Nigeria like any other nation in word is been faced with one challenge or the other today among every other major challenge faced by our beloved country Nigeria is the birth of health care practitioner most importantly Doctors, Nurses and so on.
This immigration alone continuously calls for training of more hands to come to the platform of health care delivery in order to create the expected load for their people. Among fearing obstacles which include, economic, security, physical and social challenges.”
He emphasised that, the Association of General Private Nursing Practitioners of Nigeria has deemed it fit to come together to organised this scientific[MP1] conference in order to share new idea that can be used to help in human health care delivery particularly in Nigeria.
Aremu maintain that, the administration of His Excellency Engr. Oluseyi Makinde FNSC has not only touch live of people of Oyo State by making helped one of his cardinal agenda of Omituntun 1.0 and 2.0, also he has continued supporting nursing education in the state.
It well note that recently civil service of Oyo just concluded conversion exercise for the nursing officers who have upgraded themselves with bachelor degree in Nursing Service into the appropriate level as Nursing Officers expected in the civil service, he said.
He added that, the government supported and sponsored the training of community nursing and community midwifery programme, the training was finance by the government of Oyo State 100%, also our formally known school of Nursing Eleyele which happen to be oldest nursing education centre in Nigeria in mow know as college of Nursing Sciences Ibadan having it legislation passed already into law.
Furthermore, the Oyo state government hosted the Nursing Council of Nigeria for the accreditation of some other nursing colleges in Ibadan recently, and this colleges include, Kisi Campus, Oyo Campus and Saki in other further nursing education Oy State and Nigeria at large.
For us at Oyo State Ministry of Health under the leadership of Dr. (Mrs.) Oluwaserimi Ajetumobi, we are continuously working with the Association Private Nurses to ensure that optimal care is provided by private healthcare provider in the state, this will do through encouragement and support we involving members of Oyo association in the drive to rid our community of all forms of malpractices in the health care delivery system especially in the private sector.
We shall continue to keep our doors open to render necessary support in this and many other regards.
He implores participants to take this opportunity to visit historical places in the state particularly in the ancient of Ibadan. On this note I hereby declare this general meeting open and wish all the contingent a successful deliberation
Head of Nursing Department, Federal University, Oye Ekiti, Prof. Adelani Tijani, in his keynotes addressed, stated that nurses are the backbone of the healthcare system, often serving as the first point of contact for patients. It is high time the government took action to address their needs,” he said.
According to him, “Nurses play a vital role in the recovery process of patients. They are overburdened, underpaid, and often lack the necessary resources to do their jobs effectively.
Nurses in Nigeria are underrepresented in the political sphere, which has limited their ability to advocate for better working conditions, fair wages, and educational reforms, despite being the backbone of the healthcare system, nurses often lack a voice in decision-making processes that directly impact their profession.”
Tijani maintain that, nurses must be encouraged to take on leadership roles, both within healthcare institutions and in political offices.
Strengthening the influence of nursing associations and advocating for policies that prioritize the welfare of healthcare workers will ensure that nurses’ voices are heard in the political arena.
He emphasised that, to combat the brain drain, the government should implement policies that create attractive working conditions for nurses in Nigeria. This could include financial incentives, improved work environments, and support for nurses who wish to further their education.
By addressing these challenges head-on, Nigeria can ensure that its nurses are well-equipped, fairly compensated, and politically empowered to continue providing high-quality care to the nation’s growing population.
With coordinated efforts from the government, healthcare institutions, and professional associations, the nursing profession in Nigeria can achieve significant advancement in the years to come, he said.
“The only thing that can make our politician stop medical tourism is to invest heavily on nurses’ education, provide working environment and involve nurses in top management levels on health care by appointing them as Ministers, Commissioners, Permanent Secretaries, Chief Executive of the Hospitals,” he concluded.
In his welcome address, National President of Association of General Private Nursing Practitioners of Nigeria, Prince Balogun Ajiboye said, Nursing as the centre of gravity, the pivot of health care in Nigeria and a major stakeholder, what we want to do this year is self-auditing on education, socio-political and professional activities.
We also want to x-ray government policies and other things that can facilitate quality health care services for Nigerians at all levels.
According to him, “members contribute meaningfully to the delivery of primary health care services thus, complementing government activities at bringing accessible, affordable and available health care to the doorsteps of the Nigerians both in the rural and urban areas.”
“It is general knowledge that quackery in nursing has created dents to the image of nursing; it is, also a serious factor implicated among the causes of terrible health indices and high health care costs in our nation.”
He emphasised that, quackery activities had sent so many Nigerians to the early grave. As an Association training of quacks is illegal and we are constantly reminding our members on the implications and consequences.
However, the menace is like a monster and it requires all weapons to be conquered.
Prince Balogun maintain that, our members are becoming poorer and frustrated and if this is not checked quickly, JAPA syndrome will become worse.
He appeals to the government at all levels to consider our members in the area of special economic interventions and make one digit interest loans available and accessible to us.
Balogun solicit for the establishment of an intervention bank for the health care providers in Nigeria. After all, health is wealth!
