Resident doctors at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, have commenced an indefinite strike action over deteriorating residential quarters, months of unpaid salaries for newly hired staff, and the withdrawal of call duty meals.
The industrial action, organized by the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), LUTH chapter, began on Monday following failed negotiations with hospital management over persistent welfare concerns.
The association outlined three primary demands required before work will resume:
Inaccessible Residential Quarters: Renovation work on the doctors’ quarters has been stalled for nearly 18 months due to funding shortfalls. As a result, many doctors commuting daily from distant areas like Ikorodu and Badagry have been forced to sleep in hospital lounges or their personal vehicles between shifts.
Salary Delays for New Hires: Doctors recruited in April have not been enrolled on the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS), leaving them without pay for months.
Cancellation of Duty Meals: The hospital management has ceased providing call duty meals, a standard welfare provision for medical staff working overnight shifts.
“Doctors are sleeping in their cars and in hospital lounges while treating patients. The residential quarters building has been locked for almost 18 months, but it has not been completed because of a lack of funding,”* stated Dr. Omogbolahan Adenuga, President of LUTH ARD.
During preliminary talks, LUTH management attributed the lingering issues to inadequate federal funding allocations, noting that current hospital resources are insufficient to cover both operational costs and major renovation projects.
In response, the resident doctors have appealed to the Federal Government and the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, to intervene urgently by releasing funds for project completion and authorizing IPPIS enrollment to prevent a prolonged disruption of healthcare services at the tertiary institution.
