Why Nigeria must urgently reform healthcare system to avert workforce crisis

Thadius Ijadunola, a Professor of Community Medicine, has called for a comprehensive overhaul of Nigeria’s healthcare system, warning that the country’s worsening health workforce crisis poses a serious threat to national health security and sustainable development.

Ijadunola, a guest lecturer at the 5th Oladipo Akinkugbe Distinguished Lecture of the University of Medical Sciences Ondo, in his lecture titled “Reimagining the Nigerian Healthcare System: Leadership, Research and Innovation for the Future,”
described the mass migration of healthcare professionals and the retirement of experienced personnel as a “double depletion” that is weakening healthcare delivery and eroding future leadership capacity within the sector.

He stressed that reversing the trend would require bold policy decisions, sustained investment and coordinated action by governments, healthcare institutions, development partners and other stakeholders.

“The health workforce attrition crisis constitutes an existential threat to health security and institutional resilience. The simultaneous loss of younger professionals through migration and experienced workers through retirement creates a ‘double depletion’ effect, weakening both current service delivery and future leadership capacity,” Professor Ijadunola said.

According to the professor, Nigeria must urgently adopt a multi-pronged strategy that combines managed migration frameworks, enhanced remuneration, improved working conditions and targeted expansion of the primary healthcare workforce to avert what he described as a catastrophic deterioration of the nation’s health security architecture.

He advocated far-reaching reforms in health financing, human resources management, gender-responsive healthcare, health policy, legislation, research priorities, economic management and relevant constitutional provisions to build an inclusive and resilient healthcare system.

“By addressing the fundamental gaps in health funding, human resources management, gender-responsive care, health policy and legislative enactments, health research priorities, economic management and relevant constitutional provisions, Nigeria can build a healthcare system that truly works for all its citizens, leaving no one behind,” he said.

Ijadunola added that his lecture presented a practical roadmap for transforming the nation’s healthcare sector, noting that renewed political commitment would enable Nigeria to harness technology, innovation and gender-equitable policies to improve access to quality and affordable healthcare.

“With a renewed commitment to healthcare as a national priority, Nigeria can leverage technology, innovation and a gender-equitable approach to deliver quality, accessible and affordable healthcare to its people. This is not just a moral imperative but a crucial step towards a healthier, more prosperous and more equitable Nigeria,” he said.

Earlier in his welcome address, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo, Ebunoluwa Adejuyigbe, described the annual Oladipo Akinkugbe Distinguished Lecture as more than an academic tradition, saying it is a celebration of the enduring legacy of one of Nigeria’s foremost physician-scholars and university administrators.

According to the Vice-Chancellor, the late Emeritus Professor Oladipo Akinkugbe laid the institutional foundation upon which UNIMED continues to thrive through his visionary leadership as the pioneer Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council.

“Today’s gathering is far more than an academic tradition; it is a solemn celebration of a life whose enduring legacy continues to illuminate the path of medical education, university governance and national development,” Professor Adejuyigbe said.

He noted that Akinkugbe’s principled leadership, insistence on excellence and exceptional administrative acumen helped shape the ethos of the institution and left an enduring legacy for future generations.

Adejuyigbe said the theme of this year’s lecture was timely, as it reflected the ideals that Professor Akinkugbe championed throughout his distinguished career and addressed the pressing realities confronting Nigeria’s healthcare sector.

“The theme of this year’s lecture, “Reimagining Nigerian Healthcare: Leadership, Research, and Innovation for the Future”, could not be more apt. As our nation continues to confront evolving healthcare challenges, this theme calls upon all stakeholders to embrace courageous leadership, strengthen research capacity, foster innovation and build a resilient, equitable and sustainable healthcare system capable of meeting the needs and aspirations of present and future generations,” she said.

Expressing confidence in the outcome of the lecture, the Vice-Chancellor said the university expected the intellectual engagement to generate practical solutions and policy directions capable of advancing healthcare delivery in Nigeria and beyond.

“It is our earnest hope that the rich intellectual engagement that will characterise today’s lecture will not only deepen our understanding of these critical issues but also stimulate practical solutions and policy directions that will advance healthcare delivery in Nigeria and beyond,” she added.