Ogun woos new nurses with jobs, warns against unsafe medical practices

The Ogun State Government has offered employment opportunities to 52 newly inducted nurses from Chrisland University, Abeokuta, urging them to remain in Nigeria and help strengthen the country’s healthcare system rather than seek opportunities abroad.

The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Tomi Coker, made the appeal on Thursday during the induction of the newly qualified nurses into the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria.

Coker, who was represented at the ceremony by Dr Omowunmi Awonuga, Deputy Provost of the Ogun State College of Nursing Sciences, Abeokuta, said the government was ready to employ qualified nurses as part of efforts to improve healthcare delivery across the state.

She said the Ministry of Health recognised the critical role nurses play in providing quality medical care and remained committed to improving their welfare, working conditions and opportunities for professional development.

According to the commissioner, the government needs more nurses and is prepared to provide an enabling environment for healthcare professionals to contribute to the state’s health sector.

“Our doors are open for nurses to apply. We need more nurses in Ogun State,” Coker said, while encouraging the graduates to remain in the country and take advantage of employment opportunities at home.

She also said the state government would continue working with regulatory bodies, training institutions and professional associations to strengthen nursing education, improve service delivery and promote patient safety.

The commissioner urged the new nurses to recognise the demands of their profession and demonstrate sound clinical judgment, ethical conduct, emotional resilience and commitment to patient care.

The Vice-Chancellor of Chrisland University, Professor Oyedunni Sola Arulogun, urged the newly inducted nurses to protect patients by speaking up whenever they encountered unsafe medical practices.

Arulogun warned that nurses should not blindly follow medical instructions when they had reason to believe a patient’s life could be endangered. She said professional competence must be matched with compassion, integrity and the courage to challenge potentially harmful decisions.

She noted that nurses were often among the first healthcare professionals to detect changes in patients’ conditions because of their close contact with them, particularly during emergencies.

“A good nurse does not merely carry out instructions; a good nurse thinks critically, acts responsibly and advocates courageously for those entrusted to their care,” she said.

The vice-chancellor also encouraged the graduates to pursue continuous professional development, embrace evidence-based practice and treat patients with dignity, regardless of their social or economic circumstances.

She called on them to explore opportunities in research, education, entrepreneurship, public health and healthcare leadership, while using technology responsibly to improve medical services.

Arulogun acknowledged the growing role of artificial intelligence in healthcare but stressed that technology could not replace the human compassion required in nursing.

She also appealed to the graduates to remain in Nigeria and contribute to transforming the healthcare sector.

The Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, Dr Ndagi Al-Hassan, represented by Nurse Eleanor Chinwe Nwaka, advised the newly inducted nurses to maintain good relationships with mentors and other healthcare workers.

Al-Hassan stressed that effective healthcare delivery depended on cooperation among all members of a hospital team, including cleaners and other support personnel.

She urged the graduates to accept corrections from experienced colleagues and use their internship period to translate the knowledge gained during training into safe clinical practice.

Delivering the keynote lecture, Professor Christiana Sowunmi, a former Dean of the School of Nursing Science at Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, said nurses needed adequate knowledge, resources, confidence and institutional support to protect both patients and themselves.

Sowunmi identified medication errors, healthcare-associated infections, diagnostic mistakes, patient falls and unsafe clinical procedures as potential sources of preventable harm.

She urged nurses to question prescriptions they considered inappropriate, report unsafe practices and communicate clearly with other healthcare professionals rather than assume that every written instruction was correct.

The professor also warned the new nurses to guard against occupational hazards, including infections, injuries from sharp instruments, workplace violence, fatigue and stress.

The induction formally brought the 52 newly qualified nurses into the professional register of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria.