When the then Minister of Health, Professor Adenike Grange, in 2007, said that soon, the health sector will experience a total change that would make the country's healthcare system compete on a global stage with that of major world powers, one would think by now, that hope should have been a reality or at least, things must have improved that would show indications that the sector was moving towards that dream.

 

Nine years after, even with the emergence of other medical professionals, Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin and Dr. Onyebuchi Chukwu as Health Ministers, after Professor Grange had done her bit, the story hasn't changed. Nigerians are still grappling with healthcare issues, both at the primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare levels, with increased number of deaths every year from issues which ordinarily the World Health Organisation (WHO) had said were preventable.

 

But with the coming of President Muhammadu Buhari's tenure, there is renewed vigour that things would at least be done differently, going by his party's mantra of change which majority of Nigerians long yearned for.

 

However, according to concerned stakeholders in the sector, the duo of the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole and the Minister of State for Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, must identify the challenges which have for so long brought the country's health sector to its sorry state and then proffer solutions, otherwise, they may end up unable to put the sector on the global map as they promised.

 

Give priority to primary healthcare Speaking with THISDAY, a Consultant, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist. Dr. Sunday Akhabueze, said any minister that prioritises the strengthening of primary healthcare in the country, would have ended up tackling over 70 per cent of health related issues, adding that this has been the major issue leading to deaths of several Nigerians in the country, and why the country was still battling with defeating several diseases.

 

"The way our primary healthcare is run, is such that the federal government handles tertiary healthcare, states handle secondary healthcare and local governments handle the primary healthcare, but we have forgotten that this system can only work in a very organised country where the funds accruing to local governments are not sniffled down from the top. This arrangement has made the country to leave the most important aspect of healthcare in the hands of the weakest level of government, which is the local government," he explained.

 

He noted that even though the decentralisation policy, which makes the local government run primary healthcare, was based on the idea that healthcare was more efficient when it is closer to the people, this could only work perfectly in a well developed country where funding, monitoring of interventions were at very high levels, as well as in societies where the citizens were knowledgeable and well informed about their health rights. He therefore recommended that the federal government directly run the primary healthcare, while the local governments work in a supporting role, since they are the ones on ground.

 

He explained that the new ministers must device innovative ways to make primary healthcare in all the local governments of the federation stronger, otherwise, efforts put into revamping the sector would yield little result.

 

Akhabueze also advocated that health facilities be established in hard to reach communities in the country, as millions of Nigerians were being affected by lack of such facilities, leading to more incidents of health issues. "These PHCs should be manned by medical personnel, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, among others. This is very important, because disease burdens are higher in rural or sub-urban communities due to lack of awareness and poor health facilities," he noted.

 

He also called on the ministry to improve awareness programmes on several diseases in the country, as it has been discovered that healthcare always improve in areas where the citizens were more informed.

 

Solve the friction between doctors and other health workers The friction between workers in the sector, including medical doctors, pharmacists, nurses, physiologist, and other health workers, has in no small measure hampered the progress of the sector, as every minister that has manned the Health Ministry has acknowledged how much this disunity had given them room for concern.

 

No wonder in a recent interview with the media, the Vice President, Nigerian Academy of Pharmacy, Sir Ifeanyi Alueyi, called on the new health ministers to make harmonisation of the sector a priority if they must make progress.

 

"The ministers must be ready to align everybody in the industry, from the cleaners, doctors, pharmacists, lab technicians and others, because everybody is interacting with the patients. So, if there is no synergy, there won't be progress in the industry," he noted.

 

Also lending his voice, a medical expert, Dr. George Aminu, explained that the friction between doctors and other health workers always have negative impact on not just the patients, but the society in general, adding that a lasting solution must vigorously be sort by the Health Minister.

 

According to him, for the health sector to reach its needed peak, all workers in the industry must put the patients and citizens first, who in turn are the ones paying their salaries through taxation and treatment fees.

 

Annual budget for the health ministry must be increased It is no longer news that Nigerian government is among the countries spending the least per individual on healthcare, which has in no small measure impacted negatively on how the fight against diseases and other health issues are being determined. This is as WHO has continually recommended that countries give at least 15 per cent of their annual budget to their healthcare, as this would in turn affect healthcare system positively.

 

The highest budgetary allocation the federal government has given to the sector is six per cent, which experts had said was abysmally small, compared to the peculiar health challenges in the country, as well as the large population.

 

Experts also believe this was a task the Minister of Health and his State counterpart must address in the next budgetary allocation, otherwise, they may be constrained by finance to carry out activities for the year.

 

Stop the notoriety the country is gaining due to poor cancer response Nigeria has in recent years performed poorly in the fight against cancer, leading to hundreds of deaths from the scourge daily, with no help in sight to tackle the scourge.

 

No wonder in a recent event, the CEAFON summit held in Abuja, experts and stakeholders gave the verdict that the country was not ready to tackle the scourge.

 

According to a Professor of Clinical and Radiation Oncologist, Professor Sunday Adeyemi Adewuyi, the dearth of cancer machines in the country has in no small measure led to the death of several cancer patients in the country.

 

He said the recommended number of cancer machines, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was one machine to 250,000 population, or one machine to 350 to 450 cancer patients, but that Nigeria currently has seven radiotherapy machines which means there is one cancer machine to over 30 million people.

 

However, among the seven cancer machines in the country, only the one at the Usman Danfodio Teaching Hospital (UDTH), Sokoto, is currently working, which means 180 million Nigerians are currently matched to only one machine

 

With IAEA recommendation, Nigeria actually needs 840 cancer machines to match the population.

 

This will therefore be a burden on the new ministers, as over two million Nigerians were currently suffering from the disease. Time will tell if the change needed in the sector will come at this very time the citizens are yearning for improved healthcare system.

 

Thisday