By Ojoma Akor
A health systems and human resources expert has warned that the mass exodus of health workers abroad is driven by systemic failures, including how organisations manage, reward, and support their workforce.
The Human Resources Assistant Director of the Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN), Mrs. Rachel Adegbe, told Health and Science Africa that retaining health workers requires deliberate policy choices that prioritise fair pay, trust, and employee well-being.
She noted that while infrastructure and technology can be replicated, human capital remains the country’s most valuable and irreplaceable asset.
“Nigeria is losing talent because organisations, especially in the health sector, are not paying enough attention to employee well-being,” Mrs. Adegbe said. “You cannot demand performance endlessly without asking how your doctors and nurses are coping. They are human beings first,” she said.
She identified remuneration gaps as a major driver of migration, noting that health workers are often forced to compare their earnings and working conditions with those of peers abroad.
According to her, many institutions fail to align their HR strategies with economic realities, resulting in weak workforce planning and delayed or inadequate salary reviews.
“Some organisations overestimate their growth stage and ignore data-driven planning,” she said. “The result is poor cash-flow management and an inability to adjust salaries in line with inflation and rising living costs,” she added.
Beyond pay, Mrs. Adegbe stressed that trust and equity are critical but often overlooked retention tools. She warned that perceptions of unfair treatment—where rules apply selectively—accelerate brain drain, as skilled professionals lose confidence in leadership and institutional integrity.
“Trust is built when leadership says what it will do and then does it,” she noted. “When staff feel valued and treated fairly, they stay. But when fairness depends on who you are or who you know, people will naturally leave.”
She also raised concerns about workplace cultures that normalise burnout, noting that excessive work hours without adequate rest are a silent driver of migration. According to her, policies that ignore work–life balance ultimately push health workers to seek healthier systems elsewhere.
To reverse brain drain, Mrs. Adegbe called on policymakers and health-sector leaders to prioritise regular salary benchmarking, invest in worker well-being, and institutionalise transparent and ethical leadership practices.
“If we get these fundamentals right, we can retain our health workforce and ensure our best talents are strengthening Nigeria’s health system rather than being exported abroad,” she stated.
