By Adeola Badru
IBADAN— CONFERENCE of the West African College of Physicians, WACP, yesterday, urged government at all levels to strengthen the health system or risk worsening the ongoing migration of skilled medical professionals, declining service delivery, and deepening pressures on already overstretched hospitals.
The position was made at a press conference held at the Theophilus Ogunlesi Hall, University of Ibadan, to formally announce activities marking the 50th Annual General and Scientific Conference of the West African College of Physicians, WACP, Nigeria Chapter.
WACP also highlighted systemic gaps in governance, funding, workforce retention, and healthcare delivery, while emphasising the need for reforms anchored on collaboration, innovation, and patient-centred care.
Speaking at the briefing, the Chairman of the Nigeria Chapter of WACP and Vice President of the College, Prof. Benjamin Uzochukwu, said Nigeria’s health system challenges cannot be solved by restrictive policies but by making local practice more attractive, functional, and sustainable.
Prof. Uzochukwu noted that while artificial intelligence is increasingly useful in modern medicine, especially in diagnosis, it cannot replace the empathy and judgment required in patient care.
He said: “For us and for me in particular, we should not rely solely on artificial intelligence. We must combine it with human intelligence.
“In our clinical practice, we have found that artificial intelligence is very helpful, particularly in diagnosis. However, when it comes to management, the human element is missing.
“Artificial intelligence will not say, ‘I’m sorry.’ However, a clinician’s empathy can help address the social aspects of a patient’s problem by saying, ‘I’m sorry. How are you doing?’ and so on.”
He, however, expressed concern over the continued migration of health workers abroad, warning that brain drain is weakening Nigeria’s healthcare system.
“Brain drain continues to strip our hospitals of experienced specialists,” he said, adding that inflation has further reduced the real value of healthcare workers’ earnings.
On past efforts to curb brain drain, he criticised restrictive measures that limited doctors’ access to international training opportunities, arguing that such policies were counterproductive.
“At one point, the Federal Government introduced a policy that indirectly prevented some doctors from travelling abroad to undertake specialist training. However, we do not believe that this is the appropriate approach.
“To curb brain drain, we must ensure that what we have within the country is sufficient, of high quality, and offers appropriate remuneration to sustain the health system.
“If we strengthen our health system, then anyone who visits a health facility will receive appropriate treatment and quality healthcare services.”
On how Nigeria’s health sector can be revitalised, he said: “We must allocate at least the agreed 15% of the national budget to health. At present, spending is below 6 percent.”
