Posted on: Mon 03-07-2017

The term quack is the short form of quacksalver, which takes its origin from a Dutch word kwakzalver: hawker of salves. In the German glossary, quacksalber referred to a questionable salesperson who sold their wares in the market shouting in a loud voice. Quackery is a health fraud, characterized by questionable diagnosis and untested or unreliable treatments.  In Nigeria, quackery takes different forms in the fields of healthcare. From the gradual emergence of uncertified people, through misleading test results from untrained cheap workers to bone/vessel damage by ‘professional’ bone-setters; quackery remains a cankerworm that eats deep into deep into this sector of the economy.  Most Nigerians have lost their lives or those of their dear ones in the hands of people whom they thought to be trustworthy in these fields of practice.

Granted that the healthcare sector is saturated with a teeming population of unemployed professionals and a rise in the number of employers of cheap labour; should this also be the reason why the unqualified will go on snuffing out lives from innocent citizens? The truth remains that a quack never took an oath of induction to save lives, so he places money above the value he ought to offer.  This makes him different from a professional.

Again, most Nigerians present with their cases at a reputable health facility when they are done circumnavigating the planets of traditionalists in Nigeria. These traditional use herbs of unknown phytochemial components to run trial and error observations on these patients before they finally conclude that the patient should see a doctor. In most cases, for fear that their drugs may not work, they discourage clients from seeking cure from orthodox medicine. While this seems necessary to avoid certain drug-to-drug interactions, a wise man should also know when he is being used for ‘modern-day-ritual’.

Quackery is the reason almost every Nigerian who presents in many unlicenced medical laboratory facilities are condemned to the fate of  malaria and thyphoid diseases. Infact, staphylococcus and hepatitis infections are just marketing strategies used to get victims to spend their monies. By the time they get accurate diagnosis in a certified laboratory or by a licensed medical laboratory professional, they would have become full ‘subjects’ from previous herbal experiments.

How do we get rid of quacks in the health care system?

The following pieces of information will enable you detect fake health care provider (medical laboratory scientist) in Nigeria

●    Qualification

All medical laboratory scientists in Nigeria must be certified academically and professionally. Academically, one must undergo a university education, which lasts about five years and covers learning in theory, practical, research and clinical postings. Such one is then certified with a Bachelors degree in Medical Laboratory Sciences (B.MLS) from any accredited universities in the world.  Professionally, one must pass professional exams that afford them the opportunities of induction and provisional licensure by the regulatory body in Nigeria: Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN). This provisional license qualifies one to take up an internship and usually expires after a year. After the one year mandatory internship at any accredited health facility listed by MLSCN, one then goes ahead to obtain a practicing license which is renewed annually. This regulatory body have the current list of professionals in their database.  It is however sad to note that some young healthcare professionals (especially medical laboratory scientists) hardly ever get a place for internship, years after their provisional licensure. People in this category end up renewing license yearly whilst they remain hopeful for the day ‘Nigerian luck and long-legs’ will shine on them. MLSCN plays the utmost role in the accreditation of medical laboratories according to the ISO 15189 guidelines and the checklist provided by World Health Organization-African Stepwise Laboratory Improvement Programe Towards accreditation (WHO-AFRO SLIPTA).

●    Associations

Medical Professionals belong to national association that represents all those in current practice. Medical Laboratory Scientists belong to the Association of Medical Laboratory scientists of Nigeria (AMLSN).  These mother bodies have other sub-groups that house those in public and private practice. These bodies also have state branches and chapters headed by a national, state and chapter secretaries. These bodies also have official websites with contact addresses for correspondence and reference purposes. These groups provide networking platforms for professionals to relate with, learn from and recommend each other for better offers.

●    Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

The medical field is constantly advancing; diagnosis and treatment have currently moved to a molecular level. Medical Professionals are those who keep abreast of trends by actively involving in Continous Professional Development courses, conferences, workshops, seminars and other types of trainings.

●    Internet and Social Media Profiles

The internet has made life a lot easier, connecting one to every member of the planet in just one click. This means that one can just google such if one who truly exhibits professionalism also exists and connects with others online. Genuine professionals at least have genuine social media profiles, and have other colleagues in practice as mutual friends. They belong to health care groups online and engage in discussions that advance their professions

●    Attitude Is Everything

This in fact sums up many things about the medical practice. Health care professionals are not just licensed, they are formed in character. Here are certain things to check out for that differentiates professionals from quacks

1.     Professionals Explain: These people are not just proud of whom they are, they explain who they are to their clients without keeping unnecessary secrets to themselves. They educate their clients on how and why certain medical procedures are required of them.

2.      Professionals Give Value: they are the kind of people who constantly give their best. Money is not their all and all. They enjoy to spend time with their patients and to help them go through the best possible procedures that could cure them of their ailments.

3.     Professionals Make Health Claims With Evidence: Health care providers do not tell just stories; they back it up with evidence based testing. Infact research goes on constantly as new trends in disease diagnosis are discovered. A patient cannot just resume treatment when the exact cause of illness has not been confirmed and other possible causes ruled out. Quacks usually treat based only on symptoms, they offer promises that are too good to be true. They overpromise and under deliver. They invest their time in marketing their miraculous products and services rather than in research that could benefit the field, hence offering false hope to their victims. Fake drug marketers and traditionalists are concerned in marketing their wonder drugs using fake testimonials from people their victims never get to see. Sometimes they claim that their drug cures all disease. They pay no attention to drug idiosyncrasies, its uses effects and modes of action.

4.     Quacks are never qualified to offer more: If you have ever visited a drug store and want to talk you into testing for malaria or other ailments using Rapid Diagnostic Kits (RDTs), the first thing you should do is to object. Then ask if they are licensed to carry out such tests.  There are so many reasons you must ask: Malaria RDTs do not detect the presence of the slightest malaria parasite in blood, strip tests are also subject to sensitivity to other causal agents, these test methods have standard operating procedures, widal ragents for thyphoid tests are also sensitive to other diseases, your body is not for trial and error –not for needles, not for drugs. Also, diagnostic tests are carried out with standards and controls. This enables a professional detect when a kit goes bad before the expiry date-usually caused by bad storage.

5.     Professionals Are Not Cheap: There is a big difference between being cheap and being unaffordable. A cheap person has little to offer and so accorded less value. Professionals are affordable. Affordability is relative to a healthcare provider’s ideal client. A cheap person views this profession as a buying and selling trade characterized by their abilities to make unnecessary profits against the medical ethics. A cheap person makes claims to a perfect knowledge of all the aspects of medical practice the sake of cutting costs and making profits. Cheap people flock and work with cheap people; hence, a rise in quackery.

In conclusion, there are so many more ways to fish out quacks in the healthcare system. I recommend that we watch out for proper academic and professional credentials, certificates of incorporation for registered facilities, professional networks, online/social profiles and most of all, professional attitude. Nigerians should desist from services and products that elicit emotional reactions without clear information or informed decisions. Patients should be aware of the value that professionals provide through a patient explanation of medical procedures.

BIO

Chidindu Mmadu-Okoli is a medical laboratory scientist, content creator and brand story strategist; with an interest in healthcare marketing and communications.  She is the founder of Story Strategist Services, where she helps brands create the most compelling stories for visibility, influence and profits. Feel free to connect with her on [email protected]

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