The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has announced that it will no longer allow its members to provide services at odd hours because of insecurity.
The Kaduna State Chairman of the association, Dr Stephen Kache, made the decision known at a news conference on Tuesday in Kaduna,
The decision was reached following the kidnap and murder of the wife of their colleague, Dr Philip Ataga, NAN reports.
Kache appealed to the state and federal governments to help rescue the children of their colleague.
He disclosed that the kidnap has caused psychological trauma to the immediate family and body of doctors in the state.
He added that the NMA will observe a sit-in on February 6th, but will attend to emergencies only.
“The apparent targeting of doctors and their families has dampened the morale of doctors who no longer feel safe to attend to emergencies at odd hours.
”This coupled with the recent spate of assault on doctors is a recipe for disaster waiting to happen or better still, already happening.
“The worsening state of security in our dear state and the seeming helplessness of the security apparatus, with an increasing rate of abduction of doctors and other health workers as well as their families.are all issues bothering us.
“The recent abduction of the wife and two daughters of our colleague, Dr Philip Ataga, from their home with practically no help from any conventional security agencies despite the fact that it took over three hours for the abductors to gain access to the house.
“The NMA and all members wishes to state clearly that if the madness and senseless killings characterising the dreadful security situation does not improve forthwith, we will no longer be available to render healthcare/call services especially at odd hours, and also we will not hesitate to direct all members to seek safety wherever and however possible
“However, if the children are not rescued, we may be forced to take further actions,” he said
NAN