Medical experts in Nigeria have expressed dissatisfaction with the state of healthcare in the country, listing the challenges to include lack of infrastructure, inadequate medical professionals, exodus of medical practitioners, lack of enforcement of regulations, medical tourism, among others.
Burdened with these countless challenges in the sector, the experts expressed their displeasure and proffered solution at a recently held roundtable organised by Ernst & Young.
They also identified business opportunities in the healthcare sector as well as made projections on the future of health care in Nigeria, with many of them coming to a consensus that there is an urgent need for immediate overhaul of the health sector.
“When you look at the healthcare space and all the challenges experienced, people are really deterred from making investments in the sector,” said Olayinka Oyetunji, manager, transaction advisory service, Ernst & Young.
“The sector is fragmented and challenged with regulations that should make it work. A lot is being done that is below world best practice, hence the reason for the roundtable to help highlight the issues and through the medical experts present, proffer solutions that will work,” Oyetunji said.
Ola Brown, founder, The Flying Doctors, said it was essential for medical practitioners need to be influence drivers.
“The importance of driving influence in the health sector of Nigeria as medical practitioners is key. Bankers drive influence, cement companies drive influence. The question is, how are doctors driving influence?” Brown asked.
Richard Ajayi, CEO, The Bridge Clinic, said Nigerian medical practitioners have moved from focusing on treating patients to searching for money to run their clinics/hospitals. He blamed the situation on the Nigerian environment, arguing that the case was different in developed countries.
“In the process of looking for funds, we become business-inclined because we need funds to work. It is a problem because it shouldn’t be so because there is a difference between the practice of medicine and the business of healthcare. This practice is done by doctors who are distracted. If funds are available, doctors can focus on their work,” he said.
The poor quality of health-care services delivered to Nigerians has been a major concern over the years and is partly responsible for the surge in medical tourism. Many outbound medical tourists from Nigeria end up in India. In October 2015, India’s medical tourism sector was estimated to be worth $3 billion. It is projected to grow at a CAGR of 200 percent by 2020, hitting $9 billion – thanks partly to medical tourists from Nigeria.
A large number of Nigeria’s Primary Health Care Centres (PHCs) are in a horrible state. The experts say government certainly has a lot to do.
“Primary health care takes care of 70-80 percent of medical needs of the citizenry. We have spoken with the state government to help provide primary health care over a long period of time. It is important that the government understands that the private sector can get things working,” Olamide Okulaja, director, PharmAccess, said.
“The biggest influence is advocacy. We must understand that there is a business side of healthcare. Healthcare needs funding so we can, for instance, focus and deliver on disease burden among others. Healthcare for Nigerians can only be solved by Nigerians,” Okulaja said.
Whereas Nigerians continue to seek medical attention elsewhere, India has moved ahead to become a haven for medical tourists, including Nigerians. Brown of The Flying Doctors said the turning point for India was specialisation.
“For instance, the number of heart surgeries an Indian doctor does for one month will take an American doctor a whole year to accomplish,” she said.
Blessing Chukwu, deputy chief medical officer, Eko Hospitals, said the government needs to take healthcare more seriously by putting in place policies and other support systems.
“In our teaching hospitals, things are not working, the equipment there are non-functional, they get destroyed due to misuse and those that are repaired are not maintained; some of these equipment given are done for political reasons without considering those who will use it,” Chukwu said.
“Doctors who treat people abroad are mostly Nigerians, be it in China, UK, America, and so on. Why can’t they feel good about rendering same services here?” she asked.
Chukwu said the NHIS, which is meant to relieve the populace of medical bills, is challenged with proper implementation. Nevertheless, she is optimistic that having just come out elections, the Nigerian government can begin to drive policies required to fully get the health sector off the ground.
Maneesh Garg, CEO, Afri Global Group, said the rate of medical tourism from Nigeria may have reduced marginally since 2015 following the foreign exchange crunch occasioned by low oil prices.
“In my experience, what happened in 2015 when the exchange rate went up sporadically, it became extremely imperative for a lot of people who used to just fly out easily for medical attention to look at local possibilities to seek alternatives because spending hard currency abroad isn’t financially convenient,” Garg said.
“We got a lot of people, very senior people in the private sector, politicians in high places seriously looking for alternatives here or less expensive and equally competent hospitals like in India,” he said.
Similarly, with the Indian government having data showing that a lot of Nigerians are staying back after treatment, Garg said there have been visa refusals to Nigerians seeking medical treatment in India.
But all hope is not lost for Nigeria if the right things are done, he said.
“As a developing country, maybe Nigeria doesn’t need to do everything. Maybe Nigeria can use her imagination and think in a much broader or regional framework. For instance, why can’t we say Lagos is the centre for cancer care and another state for another specialisation, and on and on like that? That way it can be easier. Nigeria is the giant of Africa; it should be a centre for health excellence,” Garg said.
“Looking at it from an entrepreneurship angle, it is an opportunity but it has to be captured on frameworks where each can be centred on what they can do rather than making big bold statements on trying to change the world. I dream with my eyes open and prefer we do something and do it well,” he said.
Kemi Ajumobi
