Minister tells Directors, all hands must be on deck.

Minister of Health, Profes­sor Isaac Ad­ewole, has called on all Medical Directors to demonstrate leadership by example in the course of carrying out their du­ties in their various hos­pitals.
The minister gave the charge at the just concluded 75th Regular Meeting/4th Annual General Meeting of the
Committee of Chief Medical Director and Di­rector, Federal Tertiary Hospitals, in Abuja.

In his speech, Profes­sor Adewole noted that a workforce could easily be put to work when a strong and selfless lead­ership is in place.

In view of this, the minister said that the ministry was to initiate a performance audit in order to raise the bar in health care delivery in the country.

He also stated that this performance audit would in turn necessi­tate the establishment of a reward system where various kinds of rewards would be given to hospitals that perform well in order to encour­age them to do more.

“It would also mo­tivate others to put in their best for the good of Nigerian citizens,” Pro­fessor Adewole added.

The minister then urged the directors to submit monthly reports and records on mater­nal/infant mortality to the federal ministry as every death must count.

These records, he said, would be used to make proper assessment of the performance in­dex of the various facili­ties in the country.

He also reminded them that they were the face of the Nigerian medical system and the impression patients have about the tertiary institutions defines the entire sector.

Professor Adewole however warned the directors against pro­tecting their colleagues whose performance would be found to be be­low standard.

He advised them to move around the hospi­tal for on the spot assess­ment of how the facility was responding to the need of the patients.

His words: “A high standard of health care service with upgraded facilities and where ev­ery life counts is the only way to reduce medi­cal tourism. This is a major focal point for the health sector and Presi­dent Buhari’s ‘Change Agenda’; therefore, all hands must be on deck to achieve this feat,” the minister stressed.

Speaking on strikes in the health sector, the minister advised the di­rectors to operate an all encompassing manage­ment system where oth­er health professionals and union leaders are carried along in decision making.