In the assessment of healthcare delivery system in Nigeria at 54, if we are to put a healthcare parameter and basic health into consideration, for example the maternal mortality has reduced from 1500 per 100,000 lives from 500 to 700 per 1000 live births.

 

In the area of infant mortality, there is also a slit reduction but by and large this reduction is not up to the level that is being calculated under the Millennium Development Goals, MDGs. This reduction also reflected in the HIV and AID, TB among others. The reduction is not as much as expected under MDG.

 

If we are to consider the area of medical tourism you find out that the health system is not meeting the demand of Nigeria, meaning people still decide to go abroad and the fact of this is not far fetch.

 

One other parameter that we should be using in checking development is the coverage by National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS, the target of this scheme as at 2005 is that by 2015, 100 percent of Nigerians would have been covered, but I can tell you that as we are talking now it has only succeeded in covering about five percent, this is considerably lower than expected and we are not performing well in this area. Look at the issue of National Health Bill, up till now this Bill has not been signed into law.

 

So you find out that in the health sector we suppose to perform better but our current performance is not encouraging at all. We need to really work hard to ensure we improved because health is wealth.

 

The health of Nigerians is paramount in the agenda of any government. So we really need to do more.

 

Recommendation

Universal Health Coverage is the answer to all these problems. Let every Nigerian be insured and when you are insured you should be able to get treatment at least a basic health service must be provided for every Nigerian.

 

Once you get that, then we are moving in the right direction and this can be made visually possible through community based health insurance scheme system and ensure that the National Health Bill is passed so that the funds that will go to primary healthcare will be channel through the healthcare scheme.

 

This is how it is practised in other part of the world like Netherland where their healthcare coverage is now 99.5 percent. I believe Nigeria can also achieve this through commitment.