By Chioma Obinna

Irked by the plight of cancer patients in Nigeria, management of Eko Hospital, Lagos has appealed to the Federal Government to impose zero tax on medical equipment.

The hospital was of the view that with zero tariffs on medical equipment, patients with non communicable diseases such as cancer would have better deal treating their conditions.

In a chat with Good Health Weekly in Lagos, the Chief Executive Officer of the hospital, Mr. Olusegun Odukoya who was of the view that the zero tariff policy will benefit all Nigerians explained that the current high tariff is currently affecting the successful treatment of cancer patients in private hospitals.

Odukoya who x-rayed the importance of cancer therapy for cancer patients explained that currently Nigeria does not manufacture cancer equipment and maintenance services are also not available in the country.

According to him, “It is important that the federal government spends some money train our personnel to ensure that even when these equipment are bought and brought into the country they are maintained locally.

“Today in Nigeria, Eko hospital is the only private hospital that has radiotherapy in Nigeria. Just as other teaching hospitals have challenges with maintaining the equipment, we in Eko hospital also have similar problems which we have just resolved and the equipment is now functioning.

But if we have the well- withal of our personnel in Nigeria, the time lag that it takes in repairing these equipment will be shortened. And these will help in treating most Nigerians who cannot afford to travel abroad for cancer treatments,” he added.

He further explained that the implication of high tariff and not having maintenance personnel on ground would mean little hospitals having the facilities, very high cost treatment implications for patients because centres will now pass cost of maintenance to the patients which he said may discourage patients from accessing care.

Odukoya who disclosed that no fewer than 1000 new cases are seen in the hospital annually dismissed insinuation that cancer was on the rise saying, “there is more emphasis on early diagnosis, and people are diagnosed early and treated than in those days when they present late.”
On cancer prevention, he advised Nigerians to exercise more, live a healthy lifestyle and eat balanced diets. “Eat well, exercise and don’t abuse your body by smoking, drinking and taking drugs.”

“For cancers such as cervical cancers that can be prevented, there is need to have cervical cancer screening every three to five years. There is also the need to give young girls that are not exposed to sexual intercourse to prevent the development of cancer of the cervix.”

Odukoya who commended the Federal Government on the containment of Ebola regretted that Nigeria is losing serious money to medical tourism.

To redeem this he suggested that the Federal Government should emulate Indian Government who at a point brought al their personnel practicing abroad home and gave them a unit interest of about 3 to 4 percent.