Staff Welfare Programmes and Employee Loyalty in the Nigerian Healthcare Sector: A Study of Federal Medical Centre, Gombe

This study examines the relationship between staff welfare programmes and employee loyalty at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Gombe, in Nigeria's North East geopolitical zone. The healthcare sector in Nigeria is characterised by chronic brain drain, with healthcare professionals frequently emigrating or migrating to the private sector in search of better conditions. Understanding what welfare provisions sustain loyalty among those who remain in public health institutions is therefore of considerable policy relevance. The study adopts a descriptive survey design, drawing on data from 140 healthcare workers, including nurses, doctors, pharmacists, and administrative staff selected through stratified random sampling. A structured questionnaire validated through expert review and a pilot study serves as the primary data instrument. The study is grounded in Vroom's Expectancy Theory, which frames motivation as a function of expected outcomes and perceived fairness. Findings confirm that housing allowances, health insurance coverage, and paid leave entitlements are the welfare dimensions most strongly correlated with employee loyalty. The study also reveals that inconsistent implementation of welfare policies significantly undermines loyalty even where the policies formally exist. Recommendations include the development of a transparent, consistently enforced welfare management framework and the creation of a dedicated staff welfare committee. This research adds geographically specific evidence from Nigeria's North East to the broader literature on HRM in public healthcare. Keywords: Staff Welfare, Employee Loyalty, Healthcare, Federal Medical Centre, Gombe.