The Nassarawa State government has said that any medical doctor under its payroll who still runs a private hospital must close down the private hospital or lose their jobs
The Commissioner for Justice in the state,Abdulkarim Kama, made this known to journalists on Friday at the end of the state executive council meeting in Lafia
Kana saidt the directive would allow them concentrate on their responsibilities and avoid diverting patients to their private hospitals.
Echie,a medical Doctor ,who spoke to current matters on the issue when contacted , said the government was justified by its decision saying that doctors ought to be fully committed to the government that is paying them salary as doing otherwise would not be fair.
According to him,’government should put in place all neccessary working tools needed as well as prompt emoluments for doctors in order for them to be fully committed to their jobs
He said” The reason why some of these doctors open their private clinics is because of the dilapidated state of public hospitals and then they know there are people who can afford better and who want better ,so they go and replicate that thing they know that the patient would want in their private hospitals .When they replicate it, they know that the private patients are going to pay for it”
“So if the government is going to implement this ,what the doctors should do is to put pressure on the government to make medical equipment available”
“But the truth is that,if you are working for the government and you are also having your own clinic ,you can not give 100% “