Read A Letter from a Concerned Nigerian: 'Silent War Against Lab Scientists'

SIR: A new development has emerged in the current struggle between doctors and health workers particularly Medical Laboratory Scientists in the country. Findings revealed that doctors heading medical institutions during the last NMA summit conspired not to offer job opportunities to medical laboratory scientists in their establishments.­­� And to buttress this fact, recent adverts by some of the tertiary health institutions in the past few months have excluded these professionals. Most of the vacancies published by these institutions including that of Federal Medical Centres at Asaba and Ekiti have no positions for Medical Lab Scientists and where they have, it is for interns.

Investigations have also shown that despite complaints by the HODs over inadequacies in the number of medical lab scientists in the departments, the CMDs usually dismiss their demands for more hands. Particularly embarrassing is the case of FMC, Asaba that advertised for the position of a Microbiologist instead of a Medical Lab Scientist with specialty in Medical microbiology!

A lot of these sacrilegious acts are being perpetrated in health establishments thereby sustaining quackery in the already fragile health system and playing politics with patients� lives. No wonder we continue to have poor results and diagnosis and people will continue to suffer while the privileged ones will continue to go abroad for better services! What can a Microbiologist really do in a medical setting? Is he or she trained in investigating human diseases or carry out diagnostic investigations?­­� Does he or she know the principle guiding such investigations?

It has also been observed that most of these health institutions hardly advertise for senior positions to attract the best hands in the field of medical laboratory practice. This treacherous act is happening in a country like Nigeria where the laws are too weak. How can the Federal Ministry of Health continue to allow this to happen but for the presence of a biased minister who has continued to mislead the Ministry, mislead the President and even the National Assembly.

Sincerely, I am yet to understand why Mr President and the National Assembly should watch as these illegalities continue in the health sector. Many panel reports on the crisis are yet to be implemented. It is in a system like this that a doctor will hide or tamper with the Scheme of Service of health workers and even refuse to implement same in his establishment and the system continues. It is really time for the Association of Medical Lab Scientists to be on their toes, the Council must also act strongly in the face of these threats. There is the need to mount intense pressure at the National Assembly through constant advocacy visits. The lack of unity and coercion among health workers generally is not helping matters as each group seem not ready to work for the collective interest of all but for their individual....



Written by Smith Adekunle From Lagos,Nigeria