Japa: See how many doctors Nigeria lost in five years

By CHINYERE Nnaemeka

In the last five years, Nigeria has lost about 15,000 to 16,000 doctors to the Japa syndrome while about 17,000 had been transferred.

This was disclosed by the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Ali Pate, when he featured as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today.

Pate, who said the brain drain syndrome, otherwise known as ‘Japa’ has robbed the health sector of its best hands, affirmed that the government is doing its best to expand the training scheme and motivate others who chose to stay back and serve their fatherland.

Continuing, Pate emphasised that since the oxygen of any serious health sector is its human resource, Nigeria cannot afford to continue losing its best brains to the developed countries, even though it is a global phenomenon obtainable from other countries.

“Now to the Japa you talked about, it is not only limited to Nigeria. It is a global phenomenon. Other countries don’t have enough. It is happening in India, Philippines and other parts of Africa. In the last five years, we have lost about 15,000 to 16,000 and about 17,000 had been transferred. We’re barely managing. That’s why expanding their training will become logical. The same thing with nurses and midwives; they are also leaving. That’s why expanding the training is important to ensure those still around are well trained.

“We are beginning to take steps to expand the training and work environment, taking some steps to encourage salaries and incomes commission to do certain things that will encourage them to feel at home.

“Even the issue of working hours that has come about recently, particularly for the junior doctors, is being addresse. When some of their colleagues leave and they remain at home, the burden has not reduced, and so they work extremely hard to fill up the gaps. We’ve listened to the complaint of heavy work load, and we are looking at how we can alleviate that.

“With the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, we are looking at how within the code of ethics and the guidelines for the physician to provide some safeguards to ensure they are treated as valuable assets so they are not burnt out,”