Maslow’s hierarchy of needs emphasises how vital health is to human motivation at all levels. Survival is based on physiological needs like clean water, wholesome food, and enough sleep, while safety needs include stable housing, access to healthcare, and protection from harm. Social needs highlight the value of connections and a sense of belonging because mental and emotional health are enhanced by strong social support. Self-esteem and independence are linked to good health, while stigma or inadequacy may result from poor health according to esteem needs. At its highest level, self-actualization depends on good health to support individual development, creativity, and achieving life’s objectives, demonstrating the relationship between human potential and health.
Based on the above-painted scenario, one can categorically say that our founding fathers created good legacies in all areas of human endeavour, which have been frittered away by successive leaders. Expectedly, our healthcare system should be one of the best in Africa, nay, in the world, since Nigerian medical doctors and nurses are everywhere in the world; they are topnotch, and most of them are flourishing in their chosen profession. I read in one of the WhatsApp messages flying around in the social media that in the early 1950s and 1960s the Saudi royal family used to patronise University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan for their medical treatment. It was aptly reported that King Fahd underwent a successful surgical operation in UCH; the treatment he received made him establish a similar hospital in Riyadh, which has since become a reference hospital patronised by the rich Nigerians. Gone are the days when our institutions were the cynosure of all eyes and functioned optimally.
Nigeria, like many other countries, faces various challenges that contribute to a shorter life expectancy. The Nigerian male life expectancy at birth is cumulatively 55.1 years, according to information released recently by “Statisense,” a leading Nigerian datatech company approved by the National Bureau of Statistics and the National Population Commission (NBS/NPC), respectively. Visibly, life expectancy is shaped by a complex chemistry of social, economic, environmental, and healthcare factors. While it’s important to note that the situation may evolve and improve over time if our leaders prioritise healthcare as one of the hierarchies of human needs in addition to others. This will depend on our readiness to frontally address the indicators that have historically contributed to a lower life expectancy in Nigeria.
During the 1983 military coup, General Sanni Abacha (then a brigadier) likened Nigerian public hospitals to a mere consulting clinic, but now the story is the same due to decadence and lack of professionalism. Most of our healthcare practitioners (most especially the nurses and other healthcare assistants) have eaten their hearts; they lack conscience, empathy, and sympathy for the patient. This might probably be due to the pressure and demand of their job. It amazes one to learn through a family friend whose senior sister fell unconscious and was rushed to the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) for care and observation. The nurses in the ICT unit of the hospital exploited the patient’s family monetarily by recommending all sorts of drugs not needed for the treatment. The family later discovers that some of the drugs were not used for the patient but rather returned to the pharmacy for monetary exchange. This is unethical and unprofessional.
The nurses are essential members of the healthcare team; they are playing a critical role in promoting and maintaining the health and well-being of individuals, families, and communities. Their actions and inaction within the hospital setting are a morale booster and immobiliser for the patient simultaneously. Therefore, one of the key competencies to assuage the patient of getting better treatment is their empathic disposition. This involves their ability to understand and share the feelings of patients, to communicate effectively, and to provide compassionate care.
A young lady was reportedly stabbed by an armed robber and thrown out of a moving vehicle along the Maitama-Kubwa highway on September 26, 2023, in Abuja. The good Samaritans rushed her to Maitama General Hospital for immediate medical attention. The doctor and nurses in charge demanded the police clearance, or rather the police statement, before they could attend to her; the patient was abandoned until she died. A series of cases like that are common across the country. Have we all lost our sense of reasoning? Any case that is life and death is an emergency, and it should be treated so; this is the norm all over the world.
The Nigerian Emergency Medical Services policy (2016) stated categorically that “its main objective is to reach those in need of urgent medical care in order to satisfactorily treat the presenting conditions, from the scene of the incidents to the point of definitive care, most likely an emergency department of a hospital.” Our emergency response does not align with EMS policy. The policy specifies the availability of ambulances with a toll-free number written boldly on them in strategic places across the country and manned by paramedic’ technicians, paramedic nurses, and paramedic physicians. Unfortunately, the situation is deplorable at many accident spots across the country. Many untrained citizens who try to assist wounded victims end up worsening their cases. The difference between us and advanced countries is that they implement important policies and keep them functional continuously, such that they become norms and lifestyle choices.
The responsibility for speeding attention to health issues in all sectors rests with Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare. For our healthcare system to be seamlessly synchronised, it is crucial that the current policies be enforced to maximise sustainability. Examine current policies to ensure they are current and in line with international healthcare standards. To improve the effectiveness of health workers, develop a new policy to replace the outdated one. Retraining health workers will help them become more skilled, communicate more emphatically, be more satisfied with their jobs, and be more flexible in the new health environment. Our health system is not flawed; it simply needs to be monitored, revitalised, and evaluated holistically. Along with food security, health issues should be prioritised. To lessen people’s reliance on the poor-quality private clinics and hospitals that appear everywhere in the nation, public hospitals should be reinforced and given sufficient authority.
Rotimi S. Bello, a public commentator, peace and conflict expert, and HR Advisor writes from Canada.
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