Omo Naija, make we yarn about our health wahala wey dey vex pass for this country. You sabi say malaria no be small matter, e dey kill plenty Nigerians every year, and na about 12% of all deaths for this country. But no be only malaria dey disturb us, o! Tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and all those respiratory wahala dey join body, dey form one big health jam for our hospitals.

As I don waka from Lagos go Kano, Port Harcourt come reach Maiduguri, wetin I see no good at all. Dem dey talk say malaria treatment fit cost as much as ₦50,000 to ₦200,000 for private hospitals. If you dey think say na only sickness, think again – e dey push families enter poverty level. We no fit dey at ease when our healthcare system dey shake like this.

No be today this health problem start. E don dey happen since when dem start to neglect our health sector and underfund am. Some years back, I go one primary healthcare center for Ogun State where one doctor dey manage over 200 patients per day. Na wah! While mothers dey carry their sick pikin sit down for ground, pharmacy don run dry. Story wey repeat for thousands of hospitals daily.

According to the Federal Ministry of Health, Nigeria dey carry one of the heaviest tuberculosis load worldwide. E get about 440,000 new infections wey happen every year! Just imagine say na 440,000 families dey face medical bills wey dem no fit pay! Malaria dey show for about 60-70% of outpatient consultations – if you enter hospital, you go see am. Symptoms no dey hide: high fever, chills, body aches, everything dey wahala.

As malaria dey kill the young and the pregnant women, e no stop there. We dey also face other issues like diarrheal diseases and respiratory infections wey dey contribute to our death rate. Some of these tori suppose no dey happen for better health system, but because families no fit access clean water or proper treatment, thousands dey die. Na wetin I dey talk when I say Nigeria health wahala too much!

HIV/AIDS dey contribute to 5.18% of our national deaths, but we don make small progress since the past two decades. We dey treat about 1.9 million people with antiretroviral therapy, but e still dey remain challenges for treatment adherence and stock-out of drugs. Children no dey left out because plenty of them still dey under-diagnosed.

Then we get non-communicable diseases wey dey rise like hypertension and diabetes. Dem don start to show face, but the health system no dey ready to handle am well. We dey pay heavy price for our health – e dey hard to believe how much una go spend for treatment wey suppose dey affordable.

Nigeria dey lose billions annually because people dey fly abroad for treatment wey dem no dey trust our local hospitals to provide. Our health expenditure na about $20 to $30 per capita, compared to Africa regional average of $60. If we no fix our healthcare financing, things go dey hard for plenty families. E no go better if we continue dey rotate like this.

Na time to wake up! We fit build our health system back better, but we need good policies and government commitment. More still dey emerge! Public health education dey important, but we need strong health infrastructure, better funding, and community involvement. Na this one go help reduce diseases wey dey kill our people every year. Let’s put our heads together and find solution!