By Emmanuel ELEBEKE

The recent bombing of the United Nation’s building in Abuja did not only expose the ill-preparedness of the Nigerian government for such emergency, but showed the low capacity of Nigeria as a nation to manage cases at the National Hospital, Abuja.

This development was made evident by the movement, en-masse, of victims of the blast to South Africa by the United Nations as an expression of its lack of confidence in the ability of the hospital to manage the situation at hand effectively.

This assertion was the position of Dr. Adesegun Fatusi, a community health expert at the College of Health Sciences, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State at the just concluded Ordinary General Meeting and symposium of the Association of Resident Doctors, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, branch, in Lagos last week.

Adesegun who spoke on the topic: “Challenges of Healthcare Delivery in Face of National Insecurity”, bemoaned the high level of decay in Nigerian hospitals, especially at the primary healthcare level and wondered why health institutions in the country would be allowed to degenerate , leaving Nigerians with no option than to seek medical treatment in India and other countries with higher poverty rate.

”What happened at the National Hospital Abuja is a reflection of medical tourism Nigerians embark upon in other countries, due to lack of adequate equipment and capacity.

Several Nigerians, including the highly placed, go to places like India for medical treatment. India should not be better than Nigeria since it is more impoverished than Nigeria,” he argued.

Fatusi observed that Nigeria’s endowment with human capacity and medical experts could help in transforming the nation’s health system, should not be seen to be under utilising such potentials.

“That is why we need to look at health sector critically and put in more attention and resources,” Advocating for the 15 percent minimum annual budget recommended for the health sector he said:

”Government has put in some effort providing equipment, but it is not enough. We need to look at infrastructure in our healthcare sector to be able to address emergencies.”