Muhammad Ali Pate, Nigeria’s Minister for Health and Social Services, has identified poor funding, brain drain, obsolete equipment and lack of facilities as major issues in the nation’s health sector.
The minister made the disclosure on Thursday, during his address to the 13th Biennial Delegates’ Meeting and Scientific Conference of the Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria (MDCAN) in Kano.
Represented by Abdurrahman Sheshe, Chief Medical Director of Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, he said: “I recognize the fact that there are problems facing the medical sector in the country, which include poor funding, brain drain, a lack of facilities, obsolete equipment, a lack of enough workers and facilities, particularly in rural areas.
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“All these are part of what the current administration is working to change in order to enhance the health sector. The situation has caused a lot of problems that have to do with maternal mortality and various others.
“The government is going to work hand-in-hand with all those that are willing to contribute towards resolving these problems, especially the MDCAN, to whom my doors will always remain open for advice and suggestions, he said.
Speaking on the theme “Medical Education in Nigeria at a Crossroads: Undergraduate and Postgraduate Medical Education Challenges and the Way Forward,” he urged medical professionals to assist the government because it cannot do it alone.
