Introduction

At the top is the continuing brain drain on the sub-region’s pool of experienced doctors and nurses. Needless to say, the number of newly qualified doctors and nurses (with little or no experience) now make up the greater proportion of our healthcare workforce in the subregion. It is a huge risk if nothing is done fast to help this growing class so as to upgrade and effectively fill the gap being created by the unabated brain drain..

The growing uneven ratio of experienced doctors, nurses and other community healthcare workers between “urban” vs “rural” divide across West Africa has been ignored for too long. Even if there was no brain drain, our findings show that 99% of our experienced doctors and nurses would always confine themselves to our main cities. The result is a huge gap between healthcare outcomes in cities when compared to small towns and villages.

The neglect and lack of foresight for possible role for “retired multidisciplinary specialists” in the sub-region is a great loss. A good case in question is Nigeria. A country well known over the years for producing world class specialists. For us at PDI, we think the authorities should take a second look at the way these finest brains are discarded once they attain retirement age. They may be too frail to travel abroad to go and start all over again. But you bet, their brains are still fully loaded and ready to recreate themselves in the new generation of young and inexperienced doctors by way of mentorship. The PDI-WEST AFRICA teleECHO was specifically designed (among other things) to accommodate this.