Dr. Khalifa A.I is one of the Medical Doctors that has carved a niche for himself, easily the most vibrant and that has been unquestionable in most of his actions and the directives he proclaims. It has also been clearly demonstrated in the positive reforms that he has carried out in Nigeria Medical Association, Gombe State Chapter.It has also found expression in the peace, unity and harmony that exist among family. Folklore, acknowledge and applaud heroes, so for us it is a beginning of a new dawn. “The ideals of uncommon patriotism, unassailable piety, sterling professional leadership qualities which you epitomize, are worthy traits which will continue to inspire us in our national transformation efforts.
Hear Him:
We know you as Dr. Khalifa Abdulsalam Ibrahim, a consultant urologist. What more can you tell us about yourself?
I am a husband, a father and on the professional end, I am a Urologist, which is my primary area of specialty. I work with the Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe State. I am also currently the chairman Nigeria Medical Association, Gombe State Chapter and by virtue of that position, I supervise the welfare of about 400 doctors here in the state.
How the Journey been since your appointment as the Chairman NMA Gombe State for over 20 months now?
It’s been a very interesting journey and Iam grateful to God for grace to travel through. It started well and by Gods grace, it is about to end well but then it hasn’t been without its own mixed situations. We have had very good and positive developments also with challenges along the line, one of which we lost one of our members to death due to an acute illness a few months back and then we have also not been able to secure an improvement in the welfare of our doctors working in the state so far despite our efforts to do so. Aside that, we have had very positive developments, we have been able to institute an arm of our association where we help indigents. We have been able to renovate our structures, we have been able to develop new guidelines for our welfare, we have come up with e-bulletins which have been regular and have been steady since we came into power. These are just a few of which we have done.
What then can you say about the association in general, what are its uniqueness compared to other state chapters?
The association at all levels from the nationals to the state level is a must for doctors, it has always stood in the defense of the interest of doctors which are numerous, it has achieved successes and of course continues to face challenges in all instances. As for Gombe state NMA, one thing that has made us quite unique, I believe is our brotherliness, we have been able to develop a family here, where challenges are tackled together and successes are celebrated together , we have enjoyed enormous cooperation and support from our members ever since we came into power and this of course is something I consider very unique in terms of state chapters across the country.
We also have the Islamic Medical Association of Nigeria here in Gombe. Is there a synergistic bond between this association and the IMA in operations?
Yes, not just the Islamic Medical Association, we also have the Nigerian Christian Medical and Dental Chapter. We also have other associations within the health sector such as laboratory scientists, pharmacists, nurses and across all these, NMA has continued to partner with all of them at some times where and when necessary because we believe that our goals are basically the same which is first and foremost to deliver quality health care to Nigerians in particular those living in Gombe state and then secondly, it Is also to promote the interest of our members which basically and relatively are quite similar across board. So Yes!, there have been a very good synergy with NMA and all other medical associations across the state.
This season, lots of sicknesses have ravaged the lives of people. With NMA being the highest decision body of all doctors in Gombe State, what can you say about the health care deliveries?
Health care delivery in Gombe state has been top notch. We are lucky to some extent; we have a governor who has made all efforts to improve the infrastructure and equipment of healthcare across the length and breadth of the state. He has also promoted primary health care which is the corner stone of health care delivery, he has done very well in these areas. So far so good, we have done a good job even tho we have challenges particularly with doctors working with the state government and these challenges have included that the welfare of our doctors in the state definitely needs lots of improvement. In addition, to difficulty in terms of rise in the cost of living generally, we also have long standing agreement waiting to be implemented in the state. So far we have been able to contain a lot of the sicknesses in the state.
How accessible are drugs and medical treatment available to non-urban and rural areas?
This is where I would once more give kudos to the governor of Gombe state. Like I said he has improved the primary health care services tremendously. This has allowed for health care delivery to be taken to the rural areas to reach as many persons as possible.
What should the government do to foster a better health care delivery system that would mitigate the current posing challenges in the health sector?
There are always two sides to a coin. Even tho the governor has given these entire health care infrastructure and equipments across the state, that is one side we have the other side which is man power. These equipments would not run themselves and unfortunately the welfare for our doctors and health care workers in Gombe state needs significant improvement, it is still quite behind when it comes to that and of course this affects man power and we all know brain drain is real, even within the country a lot of doctors have moved to where they have better packages. So I think the state government can improve in the welfare of the doctors and health care workers in the state to be able to keep the man power that is necessary to deliver this quality health care to the public.
Most associations and unions today have been crippled due to ill welfarism of her members. We believe NMA has a different story of its members welfare?
NMA covers doctors both within the government and private body, covers doctors both of the tertiary and secondary so it is a mixed situation. We have areas where welfare is fair and there is no area that does not need improvement in welfare, however when we compare within the association, we see that some areas are better than some other areas. One of the problems we face is the low capitation from NHIS to HMO’s. The capitation per patient is too low for them to run proper care delivery to the patients. For our federal workers, I will say it is fair, however there is always room for improvement. One of the major reasons a Nigerian doctor would want to leave his family for another country is majorly because of welfare package to sustain themselves. NMA would continue to cry out to seek better welfare packages for its members.
What would be your advice to young ones today who have subscribed to abusing drugs such as emzor, quinine etc, all in the name of getting high?
First and foremost I am a doctor, I am not one that would support drug abuse because I know the effect it has on the body physically and physiologically, not to talk of its effects psychologically. So my advice to anyone who chooses to abuse drug for those who are yet to or considering to start, I will say NEVER START IT, then for those who are already addicted, I will say seek help as soon as possible because it is something that would destroy your life and body. Yes we know there are difficulties in the country but that should be a motivation for us to work harder and be patient. Most times our quest for quick success is what puts us into all these. We should focus more on vocational jobs for those not opportune to go to school.
Any word of advice for the general public to know that would improve and sustain the health of every man?
Health is wealth, even the richest man on earth would not enjoy wealth if he is not healthy. So the richest parameter in life is health itself. It is important we watch our health in terms of watching what we eat, watching what we do and watching what we put in our system. It’s also important that when we fall Ill we go to the right quarters; I mean the hospitals nearest to us. There’s always a healthcare facility close to you. There’s tendency for Nigerians to seek medical attention anywhere, sometimes these things we take in as medications ends up destroying our organs because they are not controlled. Most importantly let’s look out for ourselves and stay healthy
What would you want to be remembered for?
I want to be remembered for doing the right thing
