Council speaks on ways to checkmate migration of nurses as health sector suffers dearth of personnel

Nigeria ranks seventh among 57 nations with a severe shortage of healthcare professionals, according to the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, and attempts are being taken to stop nurses from continuing to emigrate abroad.

Dr. Faruk Abubakar, the council’s Registrar and Chief Executive Officer, made this announcement on Thursday in Abuja at the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives’ Federal Capital Territory chapter’s 2023 Annual General Meeting/Scientific Conference.

The conference had the theme, ‘Our Nurses, Our Future”.

Abubakar, who was the guest of honour at the event, submitted that: “To curtail the situation (nurses emigration), recruitment of more nurses is needed. If the government can provide the necessary facilities, welfare, adequate insurance for the nurses, better working environment, brain drain will be a thing of the past.

Read Also: Nigeria lost 75,000 nurses, midwives to ‘Japa’ syndrome in five years —NANNM

“Government should invest more in the training of nurses; the government should take appropriate measures in tackling all the challenges.”

The recent statistics on the emigration of healthcare professionals from Nigeria to developed countries are worrisome.

For instance, the UK immigration report in 2022 put the number of Nigerian healthcare professionals granted working visas in the UK in 2021 at 13,609.

Also, between December 2021 and May 2022, a total of 727 Nigerian-trained medical doctors relocated to the UK.

While the UK is one of the top destinations, Nigerian-trained healthcare professionals emigrate to Canada, the US, Saudi Arabia, Australia, and other developed countries.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now