Health: No need for Nigerians to go abroad

The health sub-sector of the economy is undergoing major reforms to reposition primary, secondary and tertiary health care system for easy access and affordability to all Nigerians. Experts have also advocated for a reduction in the number of people travelling abroad to seek medical attention as the country is said to be losing over $ 1 billion annually to medical tourism.

Speaking at the 3rd anniversary celebration of the Nizamiye Hospital Abuja, the Minister of State for Health, Dr. Sage Ihanire, disclosed that the country cannot continue to fund overseas medical treatment when there are better equipped hospitals like Nizamiye in Nigeria. He said, at the wake of President Muhamadu Buhari’s led administration, there was embargo on overseas medical treatment by civil servants and top government functionaries to reduce cost and discourage exchange rates in the dollar to Naira ratio and avoid undue patronage of medical institutions abroad.

The minister commended the management of Nizamiye hospital and the chairman of First Surat Group, while urging them to establish similar tertiary health institutions in other parts of the country to address the short supply of medical care in the Nigeria. According to the minister, there is no need for Nigerians to travel abroad for medical vacations considering the first class medical and health services offered by Nizamiye hospital in the last three years.

Also speaking at the occasion was the former minister for the Federal Capital Territory FCT Dr. Ibrahim Modibo, whose administration allocated the piece of land on which the Nizamiye hospital is situated. He said, after leaving office nine years ago the health facility he allocated land for has become one of the best hospitals in Nigeria with state of the art equipment that can be compared with any standard globally.

Presenting the medical performance of the hospital and free medical treatment offered to less-privileged Nigerians, the Chief Medical Director, Dr. Akah Huseyin said the journey was full of challenges, which have led to the success story of Nizamiye today. He said that the hospital had since inception carried out about 50, 000 successful surgery and unprecedented number of free medical treatment to Nigerians who cannot afford medical bills. According to him, the foundation of the hospital determine so much its success, saying the concept was to provide quality and affordable health care system to Nigerians and residence of Abuja.

First Surat Group of Companies had continued to invest in the Nigerian economy for decades. They have made a mark in the education sector through the establishment of the prestigious Nigerian Turkish International Colleges NTIC, and the Nile University of Nigeria. Having succeeded in that sector, the Turkish investors decided to expand its activity to the Nigerian healthcare sector, which led to the establishment of Nigerian Turkish Nizamiye Hospital.

In August last year the hospital performed its first open heart surgery in Abuja, Dr. Mustafa Kirman who was the lead surgeon who led a team of seven specialists that included Turkish and Nigerian professionals to carry out the procedure, said: “The procedure lasted three hours and we thank God that it was a huge success and the patient responded well and has been discharged from the hospital after a seven-day observation period.”

In his reaction to the success of the surgery, the Deputy Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Atilla Emiroglu, said: “The hospital is excited about this feat, especially with the fact that the team of medical personnel that carried out the procedure was resident doctors and specialists. “The team of doctors is resident in Nigeria and is staff of the hospital. We opted for this option to ensure that our patients get the best care and are assured that doctors are always available at short notice. With what we have on ground at the hospital in terms of personnel and equipment, there is absolutely no need for Nigerians to travel abroad for open heart surgery.”

However, the three years of uninterrupted medical services offered by the hospital has contributed to the growth and development of the health sub-sector of the nation’s economy. Nizamiye, which also served as a teaching hospital for the Nile University medical college is poised to expand its services to other parts of the country. It was inaugurated in 2014 by former President Goodluck Jonathan and today, the present administration has endorsed the competence and performance of the medical personnel. The Nigeria health sector witnesses decay in infrastructure and short supply of drugs in public hospitals, but the intervention of private investors has clearly shown a difference, even if some of the hospitals are beyond the reach of an average Nigerian.