The Chief Medical Director of Kogi State Specialist Hospital, Prof Isah Yahaya Adagiri has bemoaned the dearth of medical doctors in the state and attributed it to ‘Japa syndrome’.

Adagiri said although Governor Yahaya Bello gave standing approval to the management of the Specialist Hospital to replace any medical doctor who leaves the service, no doctors are willing to be employed by the service.

The CMD made this known during the 2024 budget defence on the floor of the Kogi State House of Assembly in Lokoja.

While stating that a lot of doctors were moving out of the country in droves for greener pastures, he explained that there were lots of disadvantages as such workers were overworked to earn every penny paid to them.

He lamented that Kogi State Specialist Hospital recently lost a doctor who left for Dubai to work, adding that his death could be attributed to the hazards of working in a foreign country.

Adagiri added that the hospital always liaised with the House Committee on Health and Social Services to get better welfare packages for doctors, he advocated for better pay to stop the Japa syndrome.