APPARENTLY responding to the recent strike by health workers over dis- crepancies in conditions of service between them and medical doctors, former National President of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Dr Dominic Osaghae yesterday urged workers in the sector to work together for the sake of the patients who he said they were all employed to protect. He stated this at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) during the opening session of the first annual Clinical Services and Training Conference with the theme; Team work and its influence on patient's safety where he said the crisis in that sector was affecting healthcare deliveries to the patients. 

"Inter professional wrangling has put the patient at great risk of getting adequate care and treatment. If the health workers cannot work in cohesion, there may be crisis here and there because teamwork is needed to take care of the 

patient.

"This is reminding us that the patient is more important than our individual professional background. We must reduce this tension in the health sector in Nigeria. This conference is very important for the staff of this hospital and for Nigeria as a whole being the first of its kind and we think other health institutions should follow suit" On his part, the Chief Medical Director of UBTH, Professor Michael Ibadin who was represented by the Chairman, Medical Advisory Committee and Director Clinical Services and Training of UBTH, the organisers of the event, Dr. Alfred Ogbemudia said the event was organised primarily to fulfil the essence of hospitals which is to extend the life span of patients, an achievement he said could only be met through team-work. 

"We want a situation where a nurse should be able to tell a doctor that his treatment plan may work - based on experience and 

not just comply that could lead to dire consequences. Where a pharmacist can be courageous enough to query prescription of a doctor to the extent that the doctor review such prescription all to the well being of the patient, the reason of all our work" In his goodwill message, Vice Chancellor, Professor Oyuki ash odin who was represented by the Provost, College of Medicine, University of Benin, Professor Vincent Iyawe commended the achievement of the management of the UBTH which he said has turned the hospital to become the best in the 

country. He however lamented that the 100 spaces per year allocated to the' school for admission was no longer adequate with the level of growth in UBTH. "We are about the largest in Nigeria 

and we are only allowed to admit 100 students per year, we have put a paperto increase the number up to 200 or 250 because we find it difficult to admit some very very brilliant medical students because of the available quota"