FG ORDERS IMMEDIATE PROTECTION MEASURES FOR HEALTH WORKERS ACROSS NIGERIA<\/p>\n
The Federal Government has ordered the immediate implementation of measures to strengthen the protection of health workers nationwide following the submission of the report of the Ministerial Committee on the Harassment of Health Workers by Security Personnel.<\/p>\n
The Committee was inaugurated on May 19, 2026, after an incident at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, UUTH, Akwa Ibom State, involving operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), and members of the hospital workforce. The incident led to the disruption of clinical services and a strike action.<\/p>\n
This was contained in a statement signed today by the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Daju Kachollom. The statement disclosed that the Committee reviewed reports from Federal Tertiary Health Institutions, FTHIs, and held consultations with professional bodies, regulatory agencies, security institutions and human rights organizations.<\/p>\n
It found that the Uyo incident was not isolated. A total of 18 incidents of assault, intimidation or harassment were reported across FTHIs in the preceding 12 months. The cases involved patients, relatives, members of the public and security personnel.<\/p>\n
The statement noted that the incidents resulted in bodily injury, psychological trauma, damage to hospital property, disruption of services and industrial actions.<\/p>\n
The Committee identified contributory factors to include poor communication, prolonged waiting times, inadequate staffing, deficient infrastructure, emotional distress, abuse of authority, and the absence of clear security protocols in health facilities.<\/p>\n
According to the statement, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, received the report and accepted all recommendations. He directed their immediate implementation in line with the accompanying action plan.<\/p>\n
“Health workers dedicate their lives to caring for Nigerians and must be able to carry out their duties in an environment that is secure and free from violence, intimidation or harassment. The Federal Government will continue to work with all relevant institutions to protect our health workforce, uphold the rule of law and ensure that healthcare delivery is never compromised,” the Minister said.<\/p>\n
Accordingly, the following measures take effect immediately across all Federal Tertiary Health Institutions:<\/p>\n
I. Any person who assaults, threatens, intimidates or harasses a health worker shall be investigated and, where evidence warrants, prosecuted under applicable laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The absence of a law specifically on violence against health workers will not preclude enforcement under existing criminal, civil or administrative laws. Sanctions, compensation and other legal remedies shall be pursued.<\/p>\n
II. FTHIs are to reinforce internal security arrangements, establish Violence Prevention Teams, and improve access control, surveillance, visitor identification, and security in emergency units and other sensitive areas.<\/p>\n
III. Each institution shall designate liaison officers to work with Law Enforcement Agencies. Security operations within hospital premises must not endanger patients, obstruct treatment, breach confidentiality, or interrupt essential services. Such operations will be governed by agreed rules of engagement and, where necessary, formal Memoranda of Understanding, MOUs.<\/p>\n
IV. All cases of assault, threat or harassment within health facilities must be promptly reported, investigated and documented. Affected workers shall receive institutional support, while serious cases will be referred to law enforcement, regulatory or human rights authorities.<\/p>\n
V. Hospital managements are to strengthen complaint-handling mechanisms, improve patient communication, and train staff in conflict prevention and de-escalation. These are part of broader efforts to improve workplace safety, quality of care, and public confidence.<\/p>\n
VI. Broader policy recommendations in the report will be presented to the next meeting of the National Council on Health for consideration and adoption of a national framework applicable to Federal, State and Private Health Institutions.<\/p>\n
The Ministry will monitor implementation against assigned responsibilities and timelines, with periodic progress reports submitted to the Coordinating Minister.<\/p>\n
The Federal Government reaffirmed that no grievance, disagreement or official assignment provides lawful justification for violence against a health worker or interference with healthcare delivery.<\/p>\n
“Existing laws will be enforced, offenders will be held to account, and all lawful measures will be taken to secure health facilities, protect health workers and safeguard uninterrupted patient care,” the statement said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
FG ORDERS IMMEDIATE PROTECTION MEASURES FOR HEALTH WORKERS ACROSS NIGERIA The Federal Government has ordered the immediate implementation of measures to strengthen the protection of health workers nationwide following the submission of the report of the Ministerial Committee on the Harassment of Health Workers by Security Personnel. The Committee was inaugurated on May 19, 2026, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":150926,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[356,18,20],"tags":[100,3322,2351,3323],"class_list":["post-151838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","category-news","category-the-nation","tag-fg","tag-health-workers","tag-prof-muhammad-pate","tag-protection-measures"],"yoast_head":"\n