In November 2014, the Federal Ministry of Health proposed a policy to privatise public health institutions, including major teaching hospitals like UCH Ibadan, LUTH, UNTH Enugu, and ABUTH Zaria. This initiative’s goal was to attract private investment to improve healthcare funding and quality while reducing costs, benefiting stakeholders in the sector. The proposal generated mixed reactions, with health workers under different unions opposing the move, saying the proposal is largely driven by entrepreneurs in the healthcare sector. This opposition by health workers unions has remained the same over the years.
Recently, a member of the House of Representatives, Chairman of the House Committee on Health, Amos Magaji, who represents Zangon Kataf/Jaba Federal Constituency in Kaduna State, said that he is confident that the other members of the House will support the campaign for the privatisation and commercialisation of the federal teaching hospitals, to promote efficiency and better healthcare delivery.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Health, disclosed this to journalists on Saturday evening, after the committee’s oversight visit to Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH), Zaria.
Mr Magaji said the House of Representatives would support the initiative to strengthen service delivery, adding that the federal government should also take a critical look into health insurance, and increase its capitation before venturing into such a project.
He added that the health insurance should capture senior citizens aged 70 years and above into the scheme because, with good capitation from health insurance, people will be able to pay their bills when the hospitals are commercialised. He said:
“At the moment, there is a huge burden of out-of-pocket expenses on health, and so if you privatise or commercialise the National Teaching Hospital, it is similar to giving Nigerians death sentences.’’
The visit to ABUTH was highlighted by the committee’s dissatisfaction over the number of personnel of the hospital which was expressed by Mr Magaji. He noted that the prestigious tertiary health facility with a 1000-bed capacity, should have adequate workers to man the facility.
The chairman pledged the committee’s commitment to tackling all grey areas in the health sector in the overall interest of all Nigerians.
“The oversight visit to the hospital was not to find fault or witch-hunt anybody, but to assist the facility in its business of delivering quality and affordable healthcare services to Nigerians”.
Earlier, the hospital’s Chief Medical Director, Hamid Umdagas, told the committee that the dearth of manpower and electricity supply were the major challenges of the hospital.
Mr Umdagas said that the hospital, which had six satellite stations and 40 clinical and non-clinical departments, was barely managing with only 2,805 personnel as of June 27.
According to him, the “Japa’’ syndrome was hitting hard on the facility’s human resources, as some of its health personnel simply disappeared, while a few had retired.
Moving the teaching hospitals from the public sector to private sector will increase average revenue per patient, but at what cost? How many citizens can afford the private sector? Most turn to the public sector due to the relief and subsidised cost. They overlook the indifferent treatment by some medical personnels in those places.
With the proposed privatisation, the cost of treatment will affect the masses who patronise them. The educational sector was asked by the federal government to source for operational funds internally, forcing the institutions to raise tuition fees for all students. The privatisation of public sectors occurs when the government can no longer fund the operations of its public sector.
What then happens to the middle class and poor Nigerians whose only access to healthcare are the government hospitals because they are cheaper than the private ones? Private business entities are purely profit driven. The government needs to look at this policy wholistically so as not to put a price on the life of a Nigerian.
If the teaching hospitals are privatised, the medical schools in universities will also be affected.
The Chief Medical Director, Hamid Umdagas has stated the challenges they have at the ABUTH, these problems cuts across government medical institutions in Nigeria. Why is the government not proferring practical solutions to the identified problems (loss of manpower due to japa, and inadequate electricity supply)?
Privatising the Health sector through the teaching hospitals hold no respite for the masses especially in such dire economic situations that exist.
