Medical, Dental Consultants Threaten to Shut down JUTH

Seriki Adinoyi in Jos

The Medical and Dental Consultants’ Association of Nigeria (MDCAN) has threatened to shut down the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) if the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Professor Edmund Banwat, does not resolve all contending issues bedevilling the institution before November 30th, 2017.

JUTH, the foremost federal health institution in Plateau State, has been embroiled in several crises in recent months, with the CMD at loggerheads with different unions in the hospital over many issues including allegations against the management of refusing to comply with circulars emanating from the Federal Ministry of Health, questionable retrenchment and persecution of staff, poor management, high-handedness, and disregard to subsisting court orders.

Last week, members of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) disrupted activities at the hospital with a protest over the refusal of the CMD to respect a court order asking him to stop sacking doctors in the hospital.

In a new twist to the development, the MDCAN, rising from its emergency meeting held at the weekend in Jos, observed that, “Medical services in JUTH have progressively deteriorated over time, and have become abysmally low due to poor management.”

The association also observed that JUTH is unable to fulfil any of its core mandate of rendering medical services, training and research due to recurrent agitation and strikes by ARD, Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) and other unions making it increasingly difficult for consultants, who are responsible for the management of patients, to offer qualitative medical services under the present situation, without the risk of medical negligence, malpractice and litigation.

Details later…