Dr. Abdulsalam Emerges as The New Medical Guild Chairman
The Medical Guild, a body of medical doctors under the employ of the Lagos state government has elected Dr. Moruf Abdulsalam a its new chairman.
Dr. Abdulsalam, a Consultant and Pediatric Surgeon at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), was elected at the end of the association’s 2023 Annual General Conference and Scientific Conference in Lagos.
He was also elected into the officers committee of the Medical Guild for the next two years with Dr Japhet Olugbogi as Vice Chairman, Dr Akinade Adekunle as Secretary, Dr Ogundare Adewale, Assistant Secretary, Dr Adu Comfortt,as Internal Auditor, Dr Bowale Okunade, Dr Itohan Oaku as Treasurer, Dr Ojekunle Femi, welfare Secretary, and Dr K.O Oreagba as the financial secretary.
In his acceptance speech, Abdulsalam who expressed mixed feelings at the opportunity to run the Medical Guild, for the next two years said though the task was daunting, his team would deliver.
“We will be building on the successes of our predecessors including the last set of executives ably led by the man with the gift of the garb. As an Exco, we would find innovative and pragmatic ways to engage with our employers to achieve the desired goals. We would promote unity and Harmony among our constituent blocs, we would pursue vigorously the welfare and the entitlement of members, engender membership re-awakening, ensure a conducive workplace environment for members, and see to the continued professional development of members.
” Specifically, our team will pursue vigorously and build upon the proffered panacea as captured in the medical Guild position paper on the human resource crisis in the health sector of Lagos state to stem the tide of brain drain bedeviling our nation owing to the increasing migration of colleagues for greener pastures.
“The JAPA Syndrome and its attendant effects of increasing workload, leading to burnout syndrome among our colleagues is not lost on us.
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“We would seek to tackle and resolve the outstanding professional and career progression issues affecting our members. We will continue to seek ways of improving the impact being made by the Guild Health fund, consolidate on completing the seal of ownership of our land at the Central Business District, Ikeja and the commencement of construction of a befitting secretariat for the association.
It will be our desire that the Medical Guild celebrates its centenary years of existence in that edifice.
“We would sustain the partnership and seek to expand the professional development courses with the University of Washington for certification in Leadership and health management and other related courses.
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“We would seek to regularize the inappropriate entry steps of consultants and medical officers into the state civil service. We shall, working with the Nigerian medical Association, Lagos, continue to advance clinical governance systems within our hospitals
“We would also seek legislative reforms in the health sector reform law of Lagos to seek to expand the scope of the Health Service Commission to occupy a special status of independence to cater for the peculiar needs of the health sector. This alone will be the beginning of the retention strategies and engender the needed reforms in the health sector.
“We shall work collaboratively with the Ministry of Health and other relevant government agencies; LASUTH, HSC, PHCB and the Health districts, LASHMA, the Medical Directors/CEO’s of our general Hospitals to continue to seek a special package for medical Doctors and indeed all healthcare workers, especially in time of need.”
He further pledged to continue to lobby the LASG to grant tax rebates to the Medical Guild on job-related allowances as it was done during the tenure of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as Governor of Lagos State.
