Medical speakers at the University College Health Center, Ibadan Chapter of the Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria have cautioned the Federal Government versus expanding medical trainee admission quotas without very first offering the infrastructure and personnel required to support the additional students.
The lecturers said increasing the variety of medical students admitted into Colleges of Medication, including the University of Ibadan, could overstretch existing centers and teaching personnel and ultimately affect the requirement of medical education.
The Chairman of MDCAN, UCH Chapter, Dr Oluseyi Akande, raised the concern in Ibadan throughout the association’s biennial press rundown held as part of activities for its 2026 Annual General Fulfilling.
Akande acknowledged the federal government’s objective to increase the variety of trained doctor in action to the country’s shortage of medical professionals. Nevertheless, he said expanding admission capability without supplying the required centers and manpower could beat the purpose of the policy.
He revealed that the Federal Government had actually stepped in by offering facilities to support the increased trainee population but revealed issue over the sluggish speed of implementation.
“At the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, these structures are not ready, even though the number of trainees confessed increased considering that in 2015,” he stated.
The MDCAN chairman advised the federal government to accelerate the conclusion of the ongoing facilities projects and strengthen supervision to ensure that centers implied to accommodate the additional students were provided as planned.
He likewise required the recruitment of more medical lecturers and other scholastic workers, keeping in mind that existing personnel were currently dealing with several obligations.
According to him, medical specialists working as lecturers are required to train undergraduate medical students and resident physicians while concurrently supplying scientific services at the teaching hospital.
Akande said the pressure on medical workers had actually increased considerably as a result of the migration of healthcare specialists abroad and weaknesses in primary and secondary health care shipment across the country.
“Our members are already overworked in the health center because of Japa syndrome and nearly non-existent main and secondary healthcare centers in a lot of states of the Federation,” he said.
He prompted the government to increase staffing levels in Colleges of Medicine and provide suitable monetary incentives for lecturers who handle additional responsibilities due to the fact that of the broadened admission quotas.
“Medication is an apprenticeship, as we say; training of extra medical students is demanding and should be sufficiently compensated,” Akande said.
The chairman proposed using the existing earned allowances system in universities as a possible framework for compensating medical lecturers whose work increase as a result of additional student admissions.
Beyond the concern of medical education, MDCAN required immediate financial investment in infrastructure and manpower throughout federal mentor healthcare facilities, cautioning that the growing pressure on the tertiary health care system required more powerful institutional support.
Akande also criticised the extended lack of governing boards in federal tertiary healthcare facilities, stating the failure to make up boards of management for more than 2 years had impacted administration and decision-making at organizations, including UCH.
He discussed that the previous boards were liquified by the Federal government after their tenure expired, leaving Chief Medical Directors to manage the everyday affairs of the medical facilities without the assistance of substantive governing boards.
The MDCAN chairman said the obligations of a Chief Medical Director as the president of a medical facility were different from those designated to a Board of Management under the University Teaching Health Center Act.
“While the Chief Medical Director, as Chief Executive Officer, manages day-to-day operations, the medical facility’s Board of Management is to equip, maintain, and run the healthcare facility, as specified in the University Mentor Medical Facility Act,” he stated.
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He included that the boards were responsible for policy direction, significant approvals and other essential choices needed for the efficient administration of federal mentor healthcare facilities.
According to him, the lack of the boards had actually implied that certain matters requiring approval were referred to the collaborating Minister of Health, creating delays because of the volume of responsibilities handled by the minister.
“We, for that reason, contact the Federal Government of Nigeria to, as a matter of seriousness, make up the Board of Management of the Federal Tertiary Hospitals in Nigeria to guarantee their smooth running and prompt shipment of their requireds,” he stated.
The association also raised issues about delays in income payments to newly hired experts and physicians moved from other hospitals to UCH through the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Details System.
Akande stated some specialists had actually gone for numerous months without receiving their wages because of administrative treatments involving the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation and the Accountant-General’s Workplace.
He said extended income delays had created financial problems for impacted medical professionals and their households and might negatively affect their inspiration and dedication.
“Think of a senior doctor leaving one task for another, just to go months without salary. Such experiences dissuade efficiency and commitment to work,” he stated.
MDCAN as a result required greater decentralisation of the IPPIS procedure to enable freshly used staff and workers transferring between institutions to be put on the payroll and paid promptly after resuming their new appointments.
“A labourer deserves his prompt salaries. Wage is a right and not an opportunity,” Akande stated.
The association further interested the Federal Government to release funds approved in the 2025 spending plan for the purchase of important medical equipment for UCH.
Akande stated the health center was yet to get financing for several life-saving items offered in the 2025 budget, in spite of the importance of the devices to its operations.
“I would likewise like to draw attention to the fact that the Federal Government of Nigeria is yet to launch funds to the University College Health center for the procurement of lots of life-saving equipment allocated in 2025,” he stated.
He urged the government to make the funds offered without further hold-up, noting that the devices was essential to the hospital’s capability to provide healthcare, train doctor and carry out research.
MDCAN likewise revealed concern over attacks on doctors and other health care workers, urging patients and their family members to prevent violence when dissatisfied with medical services.
Akande stated healthcare workers remained dedicated to offering the very best possible care but noted that the result of treatment might sometimes be affected by circumstances outside their control.
“Although healthcare workers are necessary to offering quality health care, some factors are beyond our control,” he said.
He recognized inadequate or outdated medical devices and unstable electrical energy supply among the obstacles that could affect healthcare shipment even when health experts were dedicated to their responsibilities.
The chairman encouraged clients and relatives with complaints about medical care to pursue suitable channels for redress instead of attacking health care employees.
“Such acts are prohibited and are punishable under the law,” he alerted.
He said attacks on health experts could even more get worse the scarcity of experienced workers by dissuading and demoralising workers currently running under tough conditions.
Akande applauded the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Health, for current steps targeted at dealing with violence against healthcare workers.
He likewise congratulated members of MDCAN, UCH Chapter, on the 2026 Yearly General Fulfilling and its accompanying activities, consisting of a scientific conference, sporting occasions, courtesy visits, the AGM, a luncheon and a thanksgiving service.