Steve Dada
8 July 2009
Lagos — Minister of Health, Professor Babatunde Osotimehin, yesterday said anybody who decides to travel abroad for medical treatment come year 2010 would be doing so as status symbol and not because such treatment sought after overseas is not obtainable in Nigeria.
The minister who disclosed this at a conference organised by Society for Quality Healthcare in Nigeria (SGHN), a non-governmental organization (NGO), noted that the government was not comfortable with the decision of some people going abroad for medical treatment, a situation which, he noted , is affecting the foreign exchange of the country.
To achieve this , Osotimehin said the Federal Government had concluded arrangements to convert four tertiary health institutions in the country by up-grading them to five-star hospitals that would possess facilities obtainable in such overseas countries.
The minister who was represented by the Medical Director of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Professor Akin Osibogun , named the hospital involved as University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan, University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital Enugu, Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria and National Hospital, Abuja.
The minister said the up-grading of the four tertiary hospitals will take off with the passage of 2010 national budget, disclosing that the arrangement had been made such that the hospitals had been distributed in four zones of the country, representing South-West, South-East, Far North and North-Central, to make the hospitals within the reach of anybody seeking treatment in the country.
In the recent times there had been lots of outcry over the decision of the top bras in the federal civil service taking off for overseas medical treatment for minor illnesses, but the minister said, the government will ensure that overseas treatment is halted except for other reasons by those who may wish to do so from 2010.
The minister assured that the hospitals are going to be equipped with the state-of-the-art medical equipment that can compare favorably with those obtainable in the industrialised countries.
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I think the minister's plan is commendable but will it work?Will the hospitals in the so called 4 zones have electricity supply 24 hrs like hospitals in New York and other developed places do?Will those who cannot afford to travel by air to such special hospitals be able to travel freely on well maintained, accident free,non death trap, pot-hole free,armed robbers free,well lit roads?By 2010(which is just around the corner)the above conditions could be met if we had dedicated,sincere leaders in place(but we DON'T!) I TREMBLE AND WEEP 4 MY COUNTRY,NIGERIA.WHEN WILL WE EVER GET THINGS RIGHT?
The minister DID NOT consider those of us in the Niger Delta region because THEY STILL SEE US AS DISPOSABLE COMMODITIES WHICH WE ARE NOT!
Bravo, Nigeria!!! You've finally done something to remove the shame and humiliation Nigerians face overseas when issues about our state of health is discussed in European and American circles. These people often mutter among themselves, and ask "why do these Africans come to our country to occupy space at our hospitals?". With this news, Nigerians can hold their heads high, and can rest assured that the security of its leaders would no-longer be compromised. It was very appalling to observe that the nigerian President would fly to Germany and Saudi Arabia to be treated of some ailments that could've been treated at home.
Truly, if any foreign intelligence service wanted to do away with him, they could've easily posed as doctors and by the way, would receive the blessings of governments in the region. We must never compromise our security, especially if we have facilities that can treat us locally. However, I would advise policymakers that those who may opt to fly overseas for medical treatment may do so, at their own expense. Individual citizens' rights to freely express their choices must not be hindered because of the new dispensation.
Also, since many Nigerians returning home after a long stay overseas may be fully medically insured, if such person or persons wishes to exercise those rights relative to their medical insurance programs, and their choice of doctors who may have their entire medical history before them, it would be foolish to deny such persons access to their primary care physicians. Therefore, even though these new approaches would be instituted in Nigeria, it is important to allow individuals to freely express themselves in terms of the choices they make.
Finally, for a country as diverse as Nigeria, and especially one where tribalism and nepotism is rife, I would suggest that the four regions chosen by the Federal Minister of Health for this program may not be adequate. For those of us from the South-South, if we are relegated to attending a facility where we know we would be discriminated against, frankly, we would not go. More importantly, I would suggest that no indigene of the Niger Delta should be subjected to venture outside of his or her environment to seek treatment beyond the Niger Delta region. I can just see recriminations and license to kill Niger Deltans by doctors who may have some qualms with the way they went about expressing their rights within the Nigerian Federation. We must NEVER be subjected to such a condition again. Many of us suffered untold tribalism and nepotism in the former Eastern Region hence there was a clamour for the creation of a Calabar-Ogoja-Rivers State, to seen as seperate and distinct from the then Eastern Region. Nigeria, please learn some lessons from your past mistakes.