From Bamigbola Gbolagunte, Akure
Medical experts have decried the loss incurred by Nigerian government to medical tourism yearly, lamenting that the country loses about $1.3 billion to medical tourism annually.
Experts and stakeholders in the health sector who gathered at the University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo, for the fourth annual Public Health Grand-round organised by the faculty of Public Health of the institution came up with the discovery.
The Public Relations Officer of the university, Mr Isaac Oluyi in a statement yesterday gave the theme of the programme as ‘Health Systems Strengthening: Building Resilience for the Future.’
According to Oluyi, keynote speaker at the event, Dr. Habibu Yahaya, who is the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Coordinator in Ondo State submitted that “health systems fragility results in about US$1.2 billion loss from the Nigerian economy to medical tourism yearly.
“This is not unconnected with the shocks often experienced by the country’s health system, noting that “Nigerian health systems face acute shocks including epidemics, pandemics and chronic stressors like poor funding and persistent strikes.”
Earlier, Acting Vice Chancellor of the university, Professor Adolphus Loto, stressed the importance of system resilience in public health.
He said: “A system has both input and output. Resilience is the ability of the system to withstand pressure without breaking.”
To this end, he said: “Building our health system to resist shocks while continuing to deliver essential services is non-negotiable.”
The medical experts posited that one of the factors responsible for weak health systems is the human resource gap.
The panelists at the event, drawn from the academia, the government and the health sectors emphasised the need for task shifting, improved remuneration, sustainable health financing, emergency preparedness and health security, community engagement and equity, innovation and research, better referral systems and use of accurate workforce data to strengthen the health systems in Nigeria. Acting Dean of the faculty of Public Health, Professor Ofonime Johnson described the Grand-round as an annual scientific gathering that provides a platform for discussing emerging public health challenges.
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