Nigeria faces severe challenges related to brain drain in a number of sectors, most notably healthcare. In order to further the country’s progress toward Universal Health Coverage (UHC), the Nigerian government has outlined new policies.
The west African country, Nigeria is a great source of highly skilled health workers who are employable globally. Regretfully, the “brain drain” has resulted in a significant loss of medical professionals and nurses in the nation in recent years. Analysts say, the medical brain drain in Nigeria could be attributed to the failure of health system leadership in the country that stems from poor insight and neglect of the problem. Nigeria’s healthcare professionals have been migrating in drones to the United Kingdoms, United States, Canada, Australia and other developed nations.
The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) says low remunerations, poor facilities, and insecurity are forcing doctors out of the country. Between 2016 and 2018, at least 9,000 Nigerian doctors emigrated to the US, UK, and Canada. Approximately 1,417 members of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) intend to depart for the United States and the United Kingdom by the end of 2023, according to information released by the organization in December 2023. Concerned about Nigeria’s subpar health system and the flight of doctors, NARD also disclosed that more than 900 of its members departed for Europe between January and September 2023. Similarly, analysts stated that in the previous three years, 42,000 nurses had fled the nation. Observers say, there is a need for the government at all levels to prioritize this menace on the political agenda and work in conjunction with healthcare institutions administrators, other leaders and stakeholders within the health sector to promote and improve welfare, working conditions, job security and satisfaction among healthcare workers as no other category of workers are so essential to the well-being of the people.
Read More: Brain Drain: The Nigerian Experience
The New Approach
Nevertheless, President Bola Tinubu has consistently prioritised the healthcare delivery which has led to significant strides towards revitalising the health sector. The Federal Government, through its Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, is putting measures in place to retain medical personnel. The government is ensuring the successful execution of its programmes and policies under the Universal Health Coverage (UHC). According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), UHC means that all people have access to the full range of quality health services they need, when and where they need them, without financial hardship. It covers the full continuum of essential health services, from health promotion to prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care across the life course.
The global health body also noted that delivery of these services requires health and care workers with an optimal skills mix at all levels of the health system, who are equitably distributed, adequately supported with access to quality assured products, and enjoying decent work. However, the Nigerian government is aware of the negative effect a depleted and unmotivated healthcare workforce could have on the UHC goal. This was the reason the President set up a high-powered committee to holistically address the issues mitigating against retention of medical officers in the country, including their welfare, equipment, and working environment.
It has been said that having enough human resources for health is essential to attaining universal health coverage, which cannot be done without having a sufficient number of licensed medical professionals. The Federal government is committed to adequate training of human resources. In the meantime, the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) has recently authorized a significant rise in the admission quota for the Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) program at several universities. The increase in the number of students admitted to Nigerian medical schools by 100% has received approval from the Minister of State for Health. Authorities noted that the increment was borne out of a growing worry over the reduction in the number of Medical Doctors in the country, which led to the Federal directive. Correspondingly, as part of its efforts to develop competent and well-rounded nurses who will greatly improve healthcare delivery in Nigeria, the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) is indexing nursing admission quotas at some universities. Several enrolment of students has therefore been increased from 38,000 to 63,000 to produce competent nurses to attend to the needs of Nigerians, according to officials of NMCN.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has indicated that countries in the Western Pacific region have made significant progress on the UHC service coverage index, which measures population coverage of essential health services based on tracer interventions that include reproductive, maternal, child health, infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases, and service capacity and access. “Protecting people from the financial consequences of paying for health services out of their own pockets reduces the risk that people will be pushed into poverty because the cost of needed services and treatments requires them to use up their life savings, sell assets, or borrow – destroying their futures and often those of their children,” WHO says. In this regard, the Nigerian government is set to unveil the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative (NHSRII) as part of efforts aimed at achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by 2030, official reports said.
In addition, the World Health Organisation has stated that, “Achieving UHC is one of the targets the nations of the world set when they adopted the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015. At the United Nations General Assembly High Level Meeting on UHC in 2019, countries reaffirmed that health is a precondition for and an outcome and indicator of the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. WHO’s Thirteenth General Programme of Work aims to have 1 billion more people benefit from UHC by 2025, while also contributing to the targets of 1 billion more people better protected from health emergencies and 1 billion more people enjoying better health and well-being.” In the interim, NHSRII aims to guide the renewal of Nigeria’s health system, part of the government’s broader health agenda. Experts indicated that the focus is driving towards UHC, ensuring that every Nigerian, regardless of location, economic status, or employment, can access essential services for a healthy life without financial strain.
In the same way, the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative (NHSRII) directly confronts poor population health outcomes, intensified by highly inequitable access to health. The initiative will leverage the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), in partnership with state governments and development partners in a transformational sector-wide approach programme to improve health outcomes.
The Federal government has also approved the immediate upgrade of key health infrastructure and equipment across all six geopolitical zones of the country. The projects, categorised into two sections, six teaching hospitals and ten other critical healthcare facilities, distributed across geopolitical zones, will see the selected institutions receiving upgrades and re-equipment with state-of-the-art medical facilities. These critical projects, set to be delivered within 12-18 months, will improve screening and diagnostics for communicable and non-communicable diseases; reduce mortality rates and improve outcomes for non-communicable diseases; create considerable employment opportunities for clinical, administrative, and managerial personnel across Nigeria’s six geo-political zones, all while building the capacity of clinical personnel in advanced procedures, diagnostics and treatment modalities, in accordance with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
The administration headed by President Bola Tinubu is unquestionably committed to providing the country with equitable and optimal health outcomes.
Be First to Comment