BY TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
Members of the Association of Resident Doctors, Osun State University Teaching Hospital chapter, on Friday, embarked on a three-day warning strike over what they described as spate of insecurity around the hospital environment.
Rising from an emergency general meeting it convened yesterday to discuss the need for the hospital management to beef up security around the medical facility as a matter of urgency, the resident doctors said they had been exposed to incessant attacks by hoodlums.
The association described the working environment around the hospital as porous and life-threatening, adding that their members had been attacked in the past by hoodlums and aggrieved relatives of patients.
In a statement issued after the meeting and signed by the President of the association, Solomon Ilori and Secretary, Felix Olaomi, a copy of which was made available to journalists in Osogbo, the medical practitioners said they would be withdrawing all forms of clinical activities in the hospital to protest the development.
The statement read: ”EGM (Emergency General Meeting) noted that the protection of lives and properties of our members and hospital staff appear not to be on the priority list of the Hospital Management.
“The hospital is so porous that workers are easily exposed to life-threatening attacks from hoodlums
“After exhaustive deliberations, the EGM made the following resolutions:
“The EGM demands that there should be an immediate provision of (a) armoured Tank, (b)presence of trained security officers (c) Security Post at both entrances of the hospital i.e. Ajegunle entrance and Idi-Seke entrance.
“There should be immediate organisation and re-organisation of the security structure in the hospital to forestall recurrence of unpleasant and life-threatening attacks on hospital staff while discharging their duties. These should include (a) routine surveillance (b) continuous dissemination of security information to members of staff among others.
“The Hospital Management should set up a Hospital-Based Security Committee that will appraise and assess the security structures in the hospital on a periodic basis. The EGM demands that our members should be an integral part of this Committee.
“There should be training and re-training of the security personnel in the hospital premise.
“That the visitors’ inflow and outflow in and out of the hospital should be closely checked henceforth.
“In view of the depressing lack of security in the hospital, the association has to withdraw all forms of clinical activities in the hospital, except for patients already on admission for the period of three days as we reconvene in a few days’ time to take further action.”
