Health experts and stakeholders have bemoaned the shortage of nurses and midwives in the country, adding it poses a serious hindrance to attainment of universal health coverage by the year 2030.
This was part of the discussion at a Policy Workshop for Nurses and Midwives organized by Young Midwifery Leaders in Conjunction with Lagos Island Maternity Hospital (LIMH), Lagos on Wednesday.
Speaking at the event, Director of Clinical Services & Training who also doubles as the Deputy Medical Director, Lagos Island Maternity Hospital, Dr. Ogungbemile Babalola, who represented the Medical Director, Dr Olufemi Omololu, lamented that nurses and other health workers are being overworked.
He, however, noted that the government is working to salvage the situation as he blamed the shortage on brain drainage in the health sector.
He said: “The state government is already putting some things in place to ameliorate the problem.
“It is actually occasioned by health personnel leaving the country for greener pastures and it cuts across virtually every profession now, that is on the administrative side, maybe the other aspects can be thrown more light on by the nurse who can tell you other problems they are facing.”
On her part, Cole Adebukola Oluwabisayo, the Head Nurse of Lagos Island Maternity Hospital and Chief Hostess of the event said “2020 as Year of Nurses and Midwives as declared by World Health Organisation (WHO) is to let the world hear our voice, about what are the challenges that we are facing, so that a policy on this can be submitted so that the whole world can see what we are facing, and it is also to celebrate ourselves for the work which we are doing.”
She added that the challenges faced by nurses include shortage of workforce in Africa.
Speaking on the Coronavirus ravaging parts of the world and how prepared the nurses are, she said that Nigerian health workers are prepared.
“We are ready; we don’t pray it will come to Nigeria, even the Lassa that is in neighbouring states, we are prepared.
“The PPP is available, the nurses are on ground; they are well equipped for it.”
Olajumoke Adebayo, a Young Midwife Leader with International Confederation of Midwives and convener of the workshop disclosed that the international organization is the governing body for midwives around the world.
“As a young midwife leader I am expected to do programmes like conferences, support our association in building their capacities and strengthening the profession. So as part of my project as a young midwife leader, I am doing a policy workshop, we are expected to move into decision making roles.
“If capacities are not built we won’t be able to fit into such places and that is why I am doing a policy workshop for the midwives to update their skills and also improve their capacity.”
She stated that Nigeria is among the countries that have the highest number of maternal mortality in the world and it is important that capacities are built.
“We should be able to build capacities of midwives, to ensure that we reduce maternal mortality. And that is why WHO is celebrating the year of nurses and midwives, so it is important that we find innovative ways of actually uplifting the status of nurses and midwives to ensuring that they are in better capacity to give quality care and also to be at decision making table.
“WHO has to declare this year, so that ministries of health and governments will be very conscious of the importance of midwives and nurse, they know that they have nurses and midwives but they have not seen the need to really invest in us and that is why WHO declared this year for us, bringing us to spotlight so that ministries of health and governments are more conscious and they now know the importance and know that without us they cannot achieve universal healthcare. So I am happy that WHO actually declared this year the year of Nurse/Midwives.
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