FG Set Double Committees To Address Resident Doctors’ Workload, Certification Disputes

The federal government has taken steps to address long-standing disputes in the health sector, including resident doctors’ workload, locum engagement, and residency training certification.

To end this, two high-level ministerial committees have been inaugurated in Abuja by the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako.

According to the Minister, the move is part of broader reforms to improve health workers’ welfare, enhance patient safety, and reduce industrial unrest in the sector.

Dr. Salako noted that excessive work hours, inconsistent locum engagement, and certification concerns for resident doctors have remained major flashpoints between government and health unions.

The first committee will focus on regulating work hours and standardising locum engagement practices across public hospitals.

The Minister warned that prolonged duty hours pose serious risks to the mental and physical wellbeing of health workers, as well as patient safety, especially amid a global shortage of healthcare personnel.

He disclosed that thefederal governmentt employed over fourteen thousand health workers in 2024 and approved more than twenty-three thousand new employments in 2025, with over seventy percent being clinical staff.

Despite these efforts, he admitted that locum engagement has been inconsistently applied and, in some cases, abused—hence the need for a clear national policy.

The committee is expected to conduct a nationwide audit of work hours, assess their impact, engage stakeholders, and develop a national framework on safe duty schedules, rest periods, and pathways to permanent employment. Its report is due within twelve weeks.

The second committee will review complaints by resident doctors over certification and recategorisation by medical regulatory bodies.

Dr. Salako said the panel will transparently assess existing policies, including requests by the National Association of Resident Doctors on the issuance of membership certificates after Part One examinations.

That committee is expected to submit its report within eight weeks.

The government has assured that recommendations from both committees will receive urgent attention as part of what it describes as a new deal for health professionals in Nigeria.