Lagos tackling healthcare worker shortage with expanded training infrastructure — Abayomi
The Lagos State Government has said it is expanding medical training infrastructure to address the shortage of healthcare professionals in the state, stressing that increasing student admissions alone cannot solve the manpower crisis.
The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, disclosed this on Thursday while explaining the significance of the government’s investment in the renovated Blue Hostel at the Lagos State University College of Medicine, LASUCOM.
Abayomi said Lagos must expand the entire ecosystem required to train healthcare professionals, including classrooms, laboratories, accommodation, clinical training sites and hospitals.
He said, “Lagos faces a serious shortage of healthcare professionals. We cannot solve this by increasing admissions alone. We must expand the entire ecosystem that trains them: classrooms, laboratories, accommodation, clinical training sites and hospitals.”
According to him, the renovation of the Blue Hostel was therefore part of a broader strategy to increase the state’s capacity to train and produce healthcare professionals.
The hostel, originally built for 48 occupants, was accommodating 195 students by September 2025 when renovation work commenced. Abayomi said structural defects were discovered in the columns, beams and slabs during the project, necessitating structural intervention rather than a cosmetic renovation.
Following the intervention, the facility can now accommodate 292 students and has been equipped with 247 solar-powered lights, 15,000 litres of water storage capacity with filtration, USB power sockets, improved ventilation and modernised living spaces.
Abayomi said architectural drawings for the project began in September 2025, followed by structural testing and repairs, civil works, finishing and post-construction testing, all completed ahead of the commissioning.
He explained that the state’s response to the healthcare manpower shortage extends beyond LASUCOM, with government expanding teaching and laboratory capacity, refurbishing general hospitals and primary healthcare centres to support decentralised training, and developing new specialist hospitals.
The commissioner also cited the deployment of digital health through the Lagos State Health Information Platform and preparations for the transformation of LASUCOM into the Lagos State University of Medicine and Health Sciences as part of the broader strategy.
He said the government was equally pursuing healthcare financing reforms, arguing that a stronger health system required a sustainable economic foundation capable of attracting talent and supporting quality training and healthcare delivery.
Abayomi said the objective was to build Lagos into a major centre for medical training and healthcare excellence in West Africa and beyond.
He urged students and the LASUCOM community to protect the renovated facility and ensure that it remains in good condition for future users.
“We are building tomorrow’s health system, one piece at a time,” he said.
