I THINK the Nigerian Medical Association was playing politics when it used the threat of strike to force Mr. President to make promises of appointment of a Surgeon General which we all know cannot be done by Presidential fiat.

In the 6th Senate, Dr. Mamora, a distinguished Senator from Lagos State, sponsored a Nigerian Medical Association bill seeking the appointment of a Surgeon General.

That effort was defeated at the Senate, but it gave other stakeholders is an opportunity to give their perspective on the issue. Our take then which still represents the view of many stakeholders is that the appointment of a Surgeon General was an ego trip by medical doctors who are losing sleep, because there are nomenclatures and appointments like Attorney General, Accountant General, Surveyor General and others in our polity.

The Surgeon General in the USA where it is popular is the head of an interventionist commissioned corps of officers much like the Federal Road Safety Corps. In the USA, the list of Professionals that make up the officer corps continues to increase and now includes engineers, any of the 15 professions can aspire to lead the corps as Surgeon General. In the USA, the Deputy Surgeon General is a pharmacist and Rear Admiral Lushiniak a physician serves as Surgeon General.

If Nigeria is desirous of a commissioned corps of public health professionals, we must propose and support an Act of Parliament that is not discriminatory and is designed to serve the best interest of Nigeria and Nigerians.

In the meantime we should strive to make the best use of Primary Healthcare Development Agency, the Department of Hospital Services and Public Health in the Federal Ministry of Health.

Leaders and elders in the health sector, in the spirit of new year must come together and save this important sector. It appears that government has failed to enthrone peace and harmony in the restive sector

The stakeholders meeting I am advocating will draw selfless practitioners who believe that the Sector must  be operated as a team and that respect must replace hatred in so much as a team number contributes to the care of patient.

Leadership of the team must be earned through demonstration of skills, competence, and humility that is the hallmark of international best practice and not the type the current act for the establishment of Teaching Hospitals that Decree 10 imposes on the sector.