The Nigerian Medical Association, NMA Abia State branch has called on the State government to ensure that its policy on retirement age of Doctors and other health workers from 60 to 65 years, is implemented without further delay.
The Chairman of NMA, Abia State, Dr Ezuruike Ezinwa who made the call on Monday, during a press conference heralding Physicians’ week 2025, regretted that many of his members retired without benefitting from the policy.
Dr Ezinwa who was flanked by other executive members of the association, said that allowing experienced members of the NMA to retire without benefitting due to bureaucratic bottlenecks, takes away the best hands from the system and affect quality of medical services.
While appreciating the Abia State government for meeting the Abuja declaration of 15% annual budget on health and for renovations of Primary health care centres, NMA said that such health centres must be equipped with qualified and experienced staff.
It requested that the ongoing employment of 771 health workers should be merit -based, so that unqualified people who may endanger peoples lives are not employed.
“We urge that this recruitment process be based on merit as we can not afford to toil with the Abia citizens”, said Dr Ezuruike Ezinwa.
He regretted that healthy life expectancy in Nigeria is about 55 years, and said that health workers’ density is less than half the WHO minimum.
The Abia NMA which called for strategic investment in health where policies should move from paper to practice, evidence -based, disclosed that maternal deaths are above 1,000 deaths per 100,000 live birth.
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