By Doris Obinna
The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has thrown its weight behind the Federal Government’s decision to set up a committee on Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) for unions in the health sector.
googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1718806029429-0’); });
Commending the move, the pharmacists demanded an end to what they described as decades of “oppression and suppression” by doctors who have continued to dominate leadership positions and enjoy unfair privileges in the nation’s health system.
In a statement signed by its President, Ayuba Tanko, the PSN noted that the health sector had reached a boiling point in recent weeks, with various unions issuing strike ultimatums and at least one group already embarking on industrial action.
He said the situation was inevitable considering the level of injustice and marginalization suffered by non-physician health workers over the years in a system dominated by physicians.
The PSN identified key issues fueling discontent, including the exclusive appointment of physicians as chief executives of Federal Health Institutions, skewed political appointments in the sector, and systemic suppression of other cadres of health professionals.
According to the society, these challenges have created a bureaucratic structure that perpetuates inequity and undermines the growth of other professions in the sector.
Tanko stressed that the establishment of the CBA committee should mark a turning point in addressing the deep-seated problems of the sector. He called on the Federal Government to fully implement existing agreements with the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) and the Assembly of Healthcare Professional Associations (AHPA), including long-overdue adjustments to the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS).
He argued that while the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) had been reviewed three times since 2014, CONHESS had been neglected for more than a decade, creating unfair disparities.
The PSN also urged the government to review job relativity in the sector to reflect new realities in training and skills acquisition. It specifically called for parity in call duty allowances between Pharm.D holders and physicians, describing the current 1:0.33 earnings ratio as “extremely ridiculous and slavish.”
The society further demanded the inclusion of academic pharmacists in CONHESS and the accelerated development of a consultant pharmacist cadre to strengthen pharmacy education and clinical practice.
Tanko emphasised that the moment called for fairness and inclusivity, warning against favouring any professional group at the expense of others. He said past discriminatory policies such as the introduction of the Medical Salary Scale in 1991 and Decree 10 of 1985 had entrenched inequality for decades, and that Nigeria could not afford a repeat.
He concluded by urging the Federal Government to harness the spirit of unity expressed at the inauguration of the CBA committee by representatives of JOHESU, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), and the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM). According to him, only equity and justice can inspire the health workforce to deliver optimally for the benefit of Nigerians.
The post PSN backs FG on CBAs, demand end to doctors’ domination appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.
