BREAKING: LAUTECH Teaching Hospital Doctors Begin Indefinite Strike Over Unpaid Salaries and Poor Welfare

Doctors at the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) Teaching Hospital in Osogbo have embarked on an indefinite strike, plunging healthcare delivery in Osun State into crisis and sparking nationwide concern over worsening conditions in Nigeria’s public health sector.

The strike, announced early Monday by the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD), LAUTECH chapter, follows months of unpaid salaries, poor working conditions, and failure by the state government to address repeated welfare demands.

According to a statement signed by the association's president, Dr. Ayodeji Adetona, the doctors are “left with no choice” but to down tools indefinitely, citing persistent neglect by the authorities.

> “We have exhausted all peaceful dialogue and patience. Doctors are owed over five months’ salary arrears, hazard allowances remain unpaid, and many of our members can no longer meet basic personal needs,” the statement read.

Hospitals across Osogbo and surrounding areas were already seeing chaotic scenes on Monday morning, with patients being turned away and emergency wards running skeletal services. Some visibly frustrated patients lamented being caught in the crossfire, with relatives of critically ill patients seen pleading with medical staff for help.

This strike marks the second major shutdown of medical services in the state in just under a year, underscoring a worsening crisis in Nigeria’s healthcare system, where strikes over unpaid salaries and poor funding have become alarmingly routine.

The state government is yet to issue a formal response as of press time, but sources within the Ministry of Health suggest “negotiations may be opened this week.” However, doctors remain adamant that no work will resume without concrete financial and structural resolutions.

LAUTECH doctors had issued a 14-day ultimatum in mid-July, which expired last Friday without any visible intervention from the state. According to insiders, some doctors have already begun relocating to private practices or seeking opportunities abroad—further fueling Nigeria’s brain drain in the medical field.

Health analysts warn that this strike, if prolonged, could paralyze tertiary healthcare in Osun State and worsen mortality rates, especially among emergency cases and maternal patients.

Meanwhile, the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) is reportedly monitoring the situation closely and may declare solidarity action if demands are not met promptly.

As frustration mounts, many Nigerians have taken to social media to express dismay, with hashtags like #SaveLAUTECHDoctors and #PayDoctorsNow trending on X (formerly Twitter).

For a state that boasts one of the most reputable medical teaching institutions in the South-West, this strike not only signals a failure of governance but raises serious questions about the future of healthcare in a country where doctors heal others while enduring systemic neglect.