NARD REVEALS CONTRACT DOCTORS NOW LIFELINE OF NIGERIA’S HEALTH SECTOR

Hospitals across Nigeria are increasingly dependent on 564 contract doctors to keep their operations afloat, highlighting the severity of the ongoing healthcare workforce crisis. The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) revealed this figure, expressing deep concern over the growing trend of hiring “locum” doctors on short-term contracts, many of whom endure job insecurity, lack of benefits, and exclusion from pension structures.
This practice, born out of necessity due to the relentless brain drain siphoning Nigerian doctors abroad, is fast becoming institutionalized. According to NARD President, Dr. Tope Osundara, the locum model, initially a stopgap for emergencies, has now become a semi-permanent staffing mechanism in public hospitals. “These contract doctors are left in vulnerable positions, excluded from full remuneration packages and subject to arbitrary dismissal,” he lamented.
The association warns that unless urgent reforms are enacted, Nigeria’s healthcare delivery could collapse under the weight of staff demoralization and poor patient outcomes. Despite federal attempts such as the One-for-One Replacement Policy and the National Policy on Health Workforce Migration, both policies remain largely unimplemented.
Health Minister Prof. Muhammad Pate confirmed that Nigeria now has only about 55,000 practicing doctors, with more than 16,000 having left the country in the last five to seven years. This leaves the nation with a doctor-to-population ratio of just 3.9 per 10,000, significantly below the World Health Organisation’s recommendations.
NARD is calling on the government to end the exploitation of contract doctors and implement structural changes that guarantee permanent employment, better funding, and improved retention strategies. “The time has come to replace short-term fixes with long-term solutions,” Osundara declared.