Patients and medical staff across Nigeria heaved a sigh of relief on Tuesday following the suspension of a planned nationwide strike by the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors.
At Jos University Teaching Hospital and Plateau State Specialist Hospital, patients and staff expressed relief at the reprieve.
Even before the suspension of the short-lived strike, services at the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital were largely uninterrupted.
At the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, medical activities continued even as the strike loomed, although outpatient services were briefly affected.
The NARD was set to begin an indefinite industrial action on Tuesday over delayed salaries, unpaid allowances, and other welfare concerns affecting its members.
However, following high-level government interventions, including engagements by Vice President Kashim Shettima, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Ali Pate and the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Muhammad Dingyadi, NARD, on Tuesday morning, announced it was suspending the strike, giving the Federal Government a two-week ultimatum to resolve outstanding issues.
In a joint statement signed by NARD President, Dr Muhammed Suleiman, Secretary-General, Dr Shuaibu Ibrahim, and Publicity Secretary, Dr Abdulmajid Ibrahim, the association said the decision followed extensive deliberations by its National Executive Council.
The statement expressed “cautious optimism,” noting that the government’s engagement signalled a renewed commitment to addressing resident doctors’ welfare concerns.
The statement read, “The NEC, in recognition of the ongoing high-level interventions and as a demonstration of goodwill, hereby suspends the previously declared total, indefinite, and comprehensive strike action.”
However, NARD warned that unresolved issues, including delayed promotion and salary arrears, non-disbursement of the 2026 Medical Residency Training Fund, backlog of 19 months’ unpaid professional allowances, and the halted implementation of the revised Professional Allowance Table, must be addressed within the two-week ultimatum.