By Ojoma Akor
Human resources (HR) play a pivotal role in transforming healthcare jobs into platforms for national service, Rachel Adegbe, a health systems and human resources expert at the Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria (IHVN), has said.
Adegbe, who is also IHVN’s HR Assistant Director, said, “A strong, strategic human resource approach is vital for delivering effective healthcare and advancing national development.”
She said that human resources are the most valuable asset any organization possesses, adding that people ultimately shape—or damage—an institution’s brand, and that every effort to drive performance depends on the quality, commitment, and mindset of its workforce.
“The quality, commitment, and mindset of our personnel ultimately determine the organization’s impact and ability to fulfil its mandate,” she stated.
She highlighted that without a clear and intentional HR strategy, every other aspect of an organization’s operations is affected.
According to her, a clear HR strategy strengthens healthcare operations and shifts HR’s role from routine administration to strategic partnership.
She said, “HR professionals who operate as business partners become deeply embedded in planning and decision-making, using data to guide workforce growth, deployment, and performance. In this capacity, HR is deeply embedded in the organization’s mission and operations, providing informed, data-driven guidance to support decision-making. This enables HR to influence organizational growth, structure, workforce planning, and employee deployment, while ensuring communication across the system is effective and aligned.”
She explained that IHVN works closely with the Ministry of Health and the Federal Government of Nigeria and clearly understands its responsibilities.
“By operating as HR business partners—not merely processing paperwork or managing hiring and exits, but serving as a core driver of organizational development—we can manage our people processes effectively from recruitment through the entire employee life cycle. Careful planning and clear communication help ensure that every staff member understands why they are in their role and how it contributes to the broader mission,” she stated.
The expert added that, from recruitment through onboarding and beyond, HR helps employees understand what is required to be effective, their role in achieving organizational goals, and how their work connects to national health outcomes and sector stability.
She said employees are encouraged to see themselves as ambassadors for the programmes they support, to recognize the value of their individual contributions, and to share in the organization’s collective successes.
For HR professionals in the public sector, she said, adopting this approach could create a powerful ripple effect.
According to her, when employees understand their responsibilities and the impact of their work, accountability improves, motivation increases, and service delivery becomes more effective.
“Without a strong understanding of HR’s strategic business role, it becomes difficult for organizations—public or private—to meet these expectations and fully realize their potential in driving national development,” she added.
Asked what specific message organisations should give to their staff to ensure a healthy workforce and contribute to national development, Adegbe said the first message should focus on the ripple effects of every individual’s action or inaction. That is, helping them understand the outcomes of what they did or did not do with respect to service delivery.
She said, “Helping people understand that message first is a good place to start. I mean, like we say in some HR settings, your CV can get you an interview, but it is your attitude that will keep you on the job. Helping people understand the attitude to bring into their work and the environment in which they operate will solve the first problem. It is not so much about “I have a PhD”; it is, “how does your PhD translate into making your organisation better?” How does it reflect in you being diligent, being honest, or being ethical in your decision-making processes?
“The second message is to communicate the importance of professionalism and ethical conduct. We cannot overemphasize that. So, you are a medical doctor or a nurse, but instead of showing empathy to your patients, you are looking to collect some money from them because you feel you are not being paid well enough. That throws professionalism out of the window. Or you misrepresent your results or reports because you need that patient to remain dependent on you. That is unethical.
“We also need to help our staff at every level understand that, in whatever role we find ourselves, professionalism is essential. Even in our communication, we must be professional, ethical, and diligent. This is something we cannot afford to discard. So how do you do your job? How do you approach it? Do you do it as though you are being forced to show up every day, or do you do it knowing that a lot depends on you? That is why the first message is important—that every action or inaction has a ripple effect.”
She added that when people understand these three areas of work, it becomes easier to get them to do what they should do, how they should do it, and when they should do it.
“Put in one word, it generates accountability. It helps people build a sense of accountability and helps us hold ourselves responsible for our work while seeing Nigeria’s development as everyone’s task,” she said.
