A medical doctor now treats 6,400 patients in most public hospitals on Nigeria,Dr. Teslim Onigbinde, an Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Rehabilitation at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife,has said
He spoke at the second induction of 34 graduates of Physiotherapy at the University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital, Ondo State
Onigbinde,who was the guest lecturer at the event lamented that the nation’s health sector is in geometrical decadence.
In his lecture entitled: “Professional, Mentoring and Leadership: Key to Excellence in Physiotherapy Career,” Dr. Onigbinde advised the inductees to arm themselves with new trends in their profession as they unfolds irrespective of their desire to leave the country in search of greener pasture.
Dr. Onigbinde, who expressed concern that the new inductees would have been working on how get job outside the country immediately after their internship, appealed that “You (inductees) are coming at a time that there is mass exodus of medical personnel. The university has taken about five years to train you, so Nigerians will be happy to have you around.
“If your lecturers had left, they will not be around to train you. We are in a very serious situation. Except something is done, we might be heading towards major crisis. I salute those who are still around despite the challenging situation.”
The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Olusegun Fatusi,said the inductees could seek job abroad because they need to survive.
He was represented by the institution’s Deputy Vice Chancellor(Administration and Clinicals), Prof. Adolphus Loto.
He said it’s the right of the inductees to seek job abroad but must be careful before leaving the nation’s shores.
He said:”It is your right to seek employment anywhere in the world because it is part of the international labour mobility. But my advice is that before you leave, you must get a job here.Many cannot come back(to Nigeria) because there is nothing to fall back on. You have two goals in your career; to solve societal problems and personal problems.
“Our dear and wonderful inductees, we are proud of you and your achievement so far. The induction programme, as you have been well tutored, is not a mere ceremony. It is a critical rite of passage into a new life – the life of professional health workers, and specifically your entry into the distinguished and rewarding profession of Physiotherapy.”
