University College Hospital Ibadan loses N1bn to strikes

The incessant strikes by health workers between 2014 and now have cost the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, over N1 billion, the hospital’s Chief Medical Director (CMD), Temitope Alonge, has said.

He made this disclosure in a chat with journalists in his office on Friday, and appealed to the members of Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) currently on strike to return to work while they continue to dialogue with the Federal Government.

“We lost about N400million in July and August during the NMA strike and since the commencement of the JOHESU strike, between October and now, the institution has lost over N600million,” he said.

Alonge lamented that human lives lost during the strike were also the reason he is appealing to the striking workers to return to work so that other health workers could offer their services.

“Although the striking workers do attend to emergency services, many more lives will probably have been saved if the strike has not been,” he said, adding; “We also have not suffered blackout when electricity was taken by PHCN because our engineering staff have been on ground.

“We appreciate the JOHESU for the human face deployed when the occasion arises and I appeal to the Federal Government to address the on going crises in the health sector,” the CMD said.