The Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria (MDCAN), University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Oyo State, yesterday, has called on the government to urgently strengthen manpower and infrastructure in teaching hospitals across the country to address growing pressure on the nation’s tertiary healthcare system.

However, the Federal Government disclosed that about 60,000 women have accessed emergency healthcare services in the last three years through interventions designed to remove financial barriers to maternal care.

MDCAN also urged the government to constitute boards of management for federal tertiary hospitals, release funds for approved medical equipment, address delays in salary payments under the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and provide incentives for medical lecturers who are bearing additional workloads.

The Chairman of MDCAN, UCH Chapter, Dr Oluseyi Akande, made the demands in Ibadan during the association’s biennial press briefing held as part of its 2026 Annual General Meeting (AGM).

Akande said the absence of boards of management in UCH and many other federal tertiary hospitals for more than two years slowed decision-making and affected the smooth administration of the institutions.

“While the Chief Medical Director (CMD), as Chief Executive Officer, oversees day-to-day operations, the Hospital Management Board (HMB) is to equip, maintain and operate the hospital, as stated in the University Teaching Hospital Act.

“The boards are responsible for providing policy direction and taking critical decisions and approvals required for the effective running of the hospitals,” he stated.

The association called on the Federal Government to, as a matter of urgency, constitute the Board of Management of the Federal Tertiary Hospitals in Nigeria to ensure their smooth running and timely delivery of their mandates.

COORDINATING Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, at a high-level dialogue on the mid-term review of Nigeria’s health sector reforms, said the intervention was particularly targeted at women who might otherwise be unable to afford emergency healthcare during pregnancy and childbirth.

According to him, 60,000 women in three years; imagine, without that provision, how many women.

The dialogue brought government officials, civil society organisations (CSOs), development partners and other stakeholders together to assess progress and challenges in the sector.

The minister called on state governments and other stakeholders to mobilise additional resources to sustain and expand the intervention, stressing that the Federal Government alone could not resolve the challenges facing Nigeria’s health system.

Chair and Co-convener of the Nigeria UHC Forum, Mrs Moji Makanjuola, said the mid-term review provided an opportunity for non-state actors to assess the country’s health transformation alongside policymakers and health agencies.

Makanjuola said the dialogue would enable stakeholders to identify successful interventions, address implementation gaps, and strengthen evidence-based accountability.

Also speaking, the CSO/HSRC Chairperson, Muhammad Mustapha, called for a shift in the assessment of health reforms from government spending and infrastructure projects to actual services reaching Nigerians.

Mustapha said the effectiveness of health financing should be measured by resources reaching frontline facilities and the services delivered with them.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Representative in Nigeria, Ms Muriel Mafico, described the ongoing reforms as bold and courageous. (Guardian)