Nigeria: The need for Urgent Tech Disruption in Healthcare.
Healthcare demands are rising as countries undergo demographic and epidemiological transitions. These transitions are triggered by an ageing population, more children surviving into adulthood (thanks to early childhood vaccinations) and an increase in non-communicable diseases such as cancer. Nigeria faces a double burden of disease comprising protracted infectious diseases like HIV and a rising number of non-communicable diseases. On the other hand, the health system also faces the challenge of inadequate funding, bad governance, and inadequate health workers.
The health sector in Nigeria has seen less disruption from technological innovations when compared to the finance and commerce sectors. According to World Health Organization, “health technology is the application of organized knowledge and skills in medicines, medical devices, vaccines, procedures and systems developed to solve a health problem and improve quality of life”. In other words, it is the use of technology to improve the quality of care and service delivery.
The internet is revolutionizing the marketplace, and the health tech industry is a fast-growing market worldwide. Currently, digital health exists in various categories, namely mhealth, telehealth, Consumer health and wellness, wearables, Electronic medical records (EMR), diagnostics, and provider tools. Others include Research and Development technologies. Although technologies such as electronic medical records have been in existence for a while, only a few hospitals in Nigeria can boast of functional electronic medical records. Globally, the newest innovation in digital health is related to consumer health and wellness and, more recently, telehealth and mobile health. According to Market Watch, Telehealth, a technology-enabled remote healthcare service, is forecast to be a game-changer in digital health by 2025.
In 2018, the World Health Organization estimated that there are 3.81 doctors per 10,000 population in Nigeria. This is more worrisome when extended to specialist doctors; for instance, there are only 250 practising psychiatrists in Nigeria. Telemedicine, when appropriately applied, can help address the perennial human resources shortage facing Nigeria’s health system. Interestingly, Nigeria has a massive opportunity for innovative disruptions that will help to improve its health outcomes. For instance, digital health thrives on the availability of telecommunication and internet services. The phone penetration in Nigeria stands at over 90%, implying that a large proportion of its adult population has access to phones. Also, mobile internet users are projected to reach 59.7% by 2026. Phone penetration and internet access are essential springboards for revolutionizing digital health innovations in Nigeria.
Source: Statista
However, the uptake of digital health in Nigeria is generally low. Before the pandemic, digital health was restricted to providing clinical and administrative tools for healthcare professionals and providers. Following the surge in Covid-19 cases, the restrictions and lockdowns led to a rise in remote monitoring and virtual consultations for patients, especially those on routine health visits and those with non-emergency conditions. This growth portends a bright future for digital health in Nigeria.
Consumerism is becoming a widespread phenomenon across every industry, and the healthcare industry is not an exception. In today’s digital era, patients are better informed, and they use the internet, social media, and other technological sources to get more information on their own. This is also reducing the asymmetry of information which is peculiar to medical practice. Patients demanding services based on informed understanding is now well established in healthcare. The famous maxim “the consumer is always right and has the right to be protected” is changing the healthcare providers’ approach towards patients’ management and promoting patient-centred care. Invariably, this is expected to increase the demand for medical technologies and innovations.
The private sector is a leading provider of healthcare in Nigeria, complementing the efforts of the government. With the private sector taking the lead in healthcare provision, it has been easy to introduce new technologies into the industry, such as electronic medical records and other e-health tools. The role of the private sector in health technology deployment was evident during the Covid-19 pandemic. For instance, the successful nationwide availability of Covid-19 diagnostics can be credited to private health providers such as 54gene. However, the rate of uptake of new technologies is still low compared to the rising health needs of the population.
Despite the enormous opportunities for technological disruptions, Nigeria’s health system is faced with a range of challenges, including but not limited to poor health infrastructure and inadequate health workers. If allowed to thrive, technological disruption in healthcare will provide a more efficient and cost-effective service delivery that is urgently needed in Nigeria’s health system.
