Health
Doctors’ strike: FG engages corps members to render health services
Consultant doctors and relevant National Youth Service Corps members have been mobilised to work in various government hospitals and fill vacant positions left behind by the resident doctors currently on strike, Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, has said.
He stated this during a media briefing in Abuja on Thursday, stressing that it was a wrong time for doctors to embark on strike.
He said, “During this strike, we have mobilised all consultants and youth corpers and all those who render services to ensure they are rendering service, to ensure that the hospital services do not collapse and everybody is doing very well,” the minister added.
“I salute the consultants and youth corpers and all those who are not on strike, who are giving service and also the private sector who are supporting us. The private sector is rising up to the challenge to make sure that health services, one way or the order, are going on and there is not serious distress in the hospitals.”
The resident doctors embarked on a nationwide strike on August 2, citing irregular payment of salaries, hazard allowances, among other issues.
The minister also said, “Although the resident doctors have gone on strike, and as I said before, we are appealing to them not to use this very vulnerable period when the country is facing a war.
“For those of you who have been very keenly following international news, you know the havoc that the Delta variant did in India, and what it has done and it is doing in Indonesia, Ireland, and other countries.
“We have only one or two percent of eligible Nigerians vaccinated. So we are really facing something like a war. When you face a war, it is not the time that soldiers say they are not going to fight.”
He called on the striking doctors to call off the strike, assuring them that the government was working to meet their demands.
“We don’t want to see here what happened in India where they also lost 400,000 lives due to COVID-19 Delta strain. We don’t want that,” he said.
He called on the striking doctors to join forces with the government to “face this common enemy”.
Speaking on the ‘no-work, no-pay’ directive issued in the wake of the strike, Ehanire said it was not to threaten the doctors, but an international practice.
“Nobody is threatening anybody with anything. That is a standard thing, that is the International Labour Organisation (ILO) recommendation that if you didn’t work why will you get paid,” he said.
“Your salary comes from taxpayers’ money. So, if you didn’t work why should you go and be saying you should be paid because if that is so, you can be encouraged to stay home for up to six months and your salary is running from public funds and you have not given the community any service.”
Health
Nigerian nurses, midwives excited as NMCN finally reactivates verification portal
Nigerian nurses, midwives excited as NMCN finally reactivates verification portal
The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) has reopened its verification portal for nurses and midwives, allowing them to once again submit their verification requests through the council’s website.
Recent checks on the NMCN website on Saturday revealed that the verification portal is now functional.
The portal now displays a message stating, “Good news, verification requests are back online,” and further notes that the expiration dates for renewal applications will now be calculated based on the application date.
A confirmation of the portal’s reopening was received on Friday. Anthony Ijeoma, a nurse affiliated with Nursingworld Nigeria, also affirmed the reactivation. He expressed appreciation for the efforts made by the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) in making this possible, and commended the NMCN for reopening the verification portal to accommodate both domestic and international nurses.
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Previously, the sudden deactivation of the portal in February had caused significant distress for numerous Nigerian nurses and midwives working abroad. Without the required verification from NMCN, many nurses found themselves in violation of visa regulations and employment laws, leading to legal complications. This situation forced some nurses, including those in the UK and the US, to return to Nigeria.
Back in February, the NMCN released new guidelines for certificate verification requests. According to these guidelines, nurses and midwives were required to have at least two years of post-qualification experience, starting from the issuance date of their permanent practicing license. Additionally, a letter of good standing was to be requested from the applicant’s employer and their last training institution, which had to be addressed directly to the Registrar/CEO of NMCN.
These new regulations sparked widespread petitions from state councils and chapters of NANNM in various states including Lagos, Ogun, Kwara, Ebonyi, and Kaduna, among others. Protests were organized, and some even took legal action against the NMCN. However, the court case was later withdrawn.
On February 27, the Nigerian House of Representatives called on the NMCN to suspend its new guidelines for issuing verification certificates to nurses and midwives, pointing out concerns over how the council’s actions might hinder professionals seeking career opportunities abroad.
The reactivation of the portal follows an appeal made by NANNM to the Federal Government, urging it to address pressing concerns of the nursing community. NANNM’s National President, Michael Nnachi, listed key demands, which included reopening the verification portal, ensuring the payment of salaries to NMCN staff, constituting the council’s board, and creating a special salary structure for nurses or reviewing their professional allowances.
This development marks a significant relief for Nigerian nurses and midwives, especially those aspiring to work internationally.
Nigerian nurses, midwives excited as NMCN finally reactivates verification portal
(PUNCH)
Health
666 medicine shops shut down in Kaduna
666 medicine shops shut down in Kaduna
The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PCN) has shut down 666 illegal medicine shops in Kaduna State for operating illegally and violating National Drug Distribution Guidelines.
The enforcement exercise, which began earlier in the week, targeted open drug markets and other locations across the state, where medicines were being sold without proper registration and supervision.
The move aims to ensure the safe and effective distribution of medicines, protect public health, and prevent the sale of harmful substances in the state.
Addressing a press conference after the end of the exercise in Kaduna on Thursday, PCN Director of Enforcement, Pharm. Stephen Esumobi said the affected premises included 47 pharmacies, 313 patent medicine shops, and 306 illegal medicine shops.
Esumobi noted that the PCN team visited 895 premises during the exercise, issuing 9 compliance directives to owners of shops found to be operating illegally.
According to him, medicine shops were sealed for offences ranging from the sale of medicines in the open drug market, operating without registration with the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria, Poor documentation, Poor storage facilities, and Stocking of Ethical products without the supervision of a pharmacist.
“The PCN will not tolerate the sale of medicines in open drug markets and other unregistered locations,” Esumobi said while adding that “we will continue to enforce the National Drug Distribution Guidelines to protect public health and prevent the sale of harmful substances.”
He added the medicine shops in open drug markets and some other locations across Kaduna state were not registered by the Pharmacy Council and are operating illegally.
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The development, he argued, posed a great danger to public health because storage conditions of medicines in such premises were at variance with manufacturers’ recommendations.
“The implication of this is that most of the medicines sold in these locations may no longer be fit for human consumption due to degradation of the active ingredients,” he said.
Esumobi warned that the PCN would not hesitate to take further action against erring medicine dealers, adding that the council would assist owners of sealed shops who were willing to comply with regulations.
He said, ”The Pharmacy Council of Nigeria (PC) is the Federal Government Parastatal charged with the responsibility of regulating and controlling the education, training and practice of pharmacy in all its aspects and ramifications in line with the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria Establishment Act 2022.
“One major obstacle militating against the quality, safety and efficacy of medicines in Nigeria is the sale of medicines in open drug markets.
“The PCN had communicated severally with the relevant stakeholders in the state including the medicine dealers in open drug markets in Zaria and Kaduna city on the need to relocate to registrable locations or a coordinated wholesale centre as their activities are in total violation of the National Drug
Distribution Guidelines.”
He added that “at the end of the enforcement exercise which began early this week, a total of eight hundred and ninety-five (895) premises were visited. This is made up of seventy-five (75) pharmacies, five hundred and fourteen (514) Patent medicine shops and three hundred and six (306) illegal premises.
“A total of six hundred and sixty-six (666) premises were sealed. The premises sealed include forty-seven (47) pharmacies, three hundred and thirteen (313) Patent medicine shops and three hundred and six (306) illegal medicine shops.
“The PC office in Kaduna will render all necessary assistance to owners of sealed shops who are willing to comply with regulations.”
666 medicine shops shut down in Kaduna
Health
NDLEA intercepts cocaine, opioids concealed in female sanitary pads in Lagos
NDLEA intercepts cocaine, opioids concealed in female sanitary pads in Lagos
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has intercepted a consignments of cocaine and pharmaceutical opioids at three courier firms in Lagos.
The NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi said in a statement on Sunday in Abuja that the drugs were concealed in ladies’ sanitary pads and hair treatment cream containers.
Mr Babafemi said that the consignments were heading to the United Kingdom, Ireland and Cyprus respectively.
According to him, in one of the logistics companies, not less than 30 parcels of cocaine weighing 1.1 kilograms were concealed in hair cream containers.
“They were recovered by NDLEA officers of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation, (DOGI), during examination of cargoes going to Ireland on Tuesday Sept. 3
“Another consignment of 24 parcels of cocaine weighing 862 grams also hidden in hair cream containers meant for delivery in UK was equally intercepted at the same company on Friday Sept. 5.
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