The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has rejected plan by the federal government to bring Chinese medical experts to help in managing the coronavirus pandemic cases in Nigeria.
It would be recalled that the minister of health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire had announced last week the coming of an 18-man team of Chinese medical experts including doctors, nurses and other medical advisers to assist Nigeria in its fight against COVID-19.
But the NMA in a statement by its president, Dr Francis Faduyile, said the presence of the Chinese medical team would dampen the morale of the Nigerian front line health workforce.
It described the plan as a “thing of embarrassment to members of the NMA and other health workers who are giving their best in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic under deplorable working conditions and a fragile health system to be subjected to the ignominy of not being carried along in arriving at such a decision.”
The NMA further stated that “doctors are profoundly dismayed to learn that the Federal Government is inviting the Chinese who from available accounts are not out of the woods themselves.
“The invitation demeans their sacrifices so far in this pandemic. We fail to see how the 18-man team would impact the current efforts in any significant way.
It therefore said the association would review its participation in the fight against COVID-19 considering the grave implications and the risk to the lives of its members should the government allow the Chinese team to come to Nigeria.
“The lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), grossly inadequate test kits and test centres across the country and the absolute lack of any form of insurance for the workforce are primordial issues begging for attention at this time.
“We are, therefore, profoundly dismayed to learn that the federal government is instead inviting the Chinese who from available accounts are not out of the woods themselves. The spike in cases and the death toll from COVID-19 in Italy coincided with the arrival of the Chinese in the guise of offering assistance. Even the United Nations has only just recently commended the efforts of Nigeria so far,” it added.
The association expressed concern that the government did not take into consideration the extant laws regulating the practice of medicine in Nigeria as enshrined in the Medical and Dental Council Act.
It added that the Medical and Dental Council of Nigerian (MDCN) should have been consulted to grant necessary approvals to foreigners to interact with Nigerian patients.
It stated that while the association appreciates the work done by doctors and health workers at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the various isolation centres nationwide, it expected the government to show appreciation by channeling the available resources and donations to improving testing facilities to detect more cases and ramp up capacity to train more workers.
“The association believes that this invitation is ill-timed and of no overbearing significance considering that whatever experiences the Chinese have can be shared by digital technology through conferencing bearing in mind that Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu has only just returned from China.
“We are not averse to the donation of equipment and supplies because we can always do with such support as even the developed countries receive support.
“In rejecting the invitation of the Chinese doctors, the NMA would instead urge the federal government to review and approve better welfare incentives to the frontline medical personnel. The provision of adequate personal protective equipment, opening and properly equipping more isolation centres and health facilities across the country is an excellent first step.
“Deploying more resources to facilitate testing as we are beginning to witness community transmission of COVID 19 is equally a better application of scarce resources,” said NMA.
It advised the government to declare a state of emergency in the health sector and use the opportunity to fix the health institutions as a matter of urgency in a bid to stem the rot.
Similarly, the chairman of the Federal Capital Territory chapter of the NMA, Dr Phillips Ekpe urged the federal government to be careful of the Chinese coming into the country at this time.
“They seem not to have a good name. We are not sure of the value they are going to add. Our case is not severe and Nigerian doctors are doing very well.
“We learnt that it wasn’t the federal government that invited them; they are accompanying some medical equipment being donated to Nigeria. So, they are even uninvited. They should offload and go. There are so many conspiracy theories around this COVID-19. We need to be very cautious. We have so many doctors out there who are not employed. Government should engage them,” he said.
He urged the government to use the COVID-19 opportunity to upgrade the nation’s healthcare facilities and motivate health workers at the frontline by increasing their hazard allowance from the current N5, 000 to N200, 000.
Also, the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) said the country’s medical experts were already winning the battle against the pandemic and should, therefore, be encouraged and motivated, not distracted and demoralised.
A statement by its president, Dr Sokomba Aliyu warned that Chinese scientists could not be trusted, given how unreliably and covertly they had allegedly managed information about the pandemic.
“Nigeria is too important in the African continent to act carelessly in the face of this emerging but potent threat to human existence. We need to holistically cross-examine the intent and purpose of the importation of the 18-man Chinese team.
“The association is puzzled that the federal government, through the federal ministry of health, would be contemplating such an adventure without first discussing it with key and relevant stakeholders like the NMA; our parent body; and all her relevant affiliates that parade some of the world’s best hands in all fields of endeavor,” the statement said.
“Some countries went ahead to accelerate the graduation of their final year medical students. They did not turn to China. If the federal government had completely employed the available qualified doctors and other healthcare workers before turning to China for medical manpower to fill any persisting gap, it would have to be less suspicious,” he added.
NARD wondered if the Chinese medical experts would accept N5, 000 as monthly hazard allowance.
“Why did the federal government not bring Chinese experts on the same conditions of service? The Federal Government needs to immediately review the hazard allowance and make it a percentage of the basic salary of all healthcare workers,” it said.
“The news making the rounds in some quarters, that the Chinese experts are coming to Nigeria to play only advisory roles and not to directly intervene in the day to day handling of Nigerian patients, does not appear believable because telemedicine should have been more cost-effective, faster and easier to harness than flying them into Nigeria and moving them from place to place at a huge cost to our national budget.”
In the same vein, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) urged the federal government to drop the idea of inviting the Chinese doctors.
The union said in a statement signed by its president, Mr. Quadri Olaleye and the secretary general, Mr. Musa-Lawal Ozigi said the invitation would not be necessary since Nigerian doctors are capable of combating the pandemic.
The union argued that the minimal number of infection and deaths was a proof that the country was not doing badly in handling of the situation.
“Truly, the Chinese authorities have done well by not recording more cases in their country. It is novel and also shows how proactive and committed they are to the crises.
That notwithstanding, we insist that we do not need them now; rather we shall continue to adhere to the precautions reeled out by the health professionals to make the job easy,” it said.
The union also noted the debate about the connection between 5G network and the virus.
“Although the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ibrahim, in a statement has said no licence had been issued as regards 5G in Nigeria, but at the same time we saw an official letter from a telco company notifying Nigerians that they are the first in West Africa to conduct a trial on 5G technology.
“That makes it a bit confusing. We would want the federal government to set up a committee of professionals to research on the development as it will help to address the fears of many Nigerians. We must collectively work to ensure the welfare, health, and security of Nigerians are not taken for granted. We must be circumspect now,” the union added.
