World wide, Priorities are usually given to the health system. What is more important than saving the lives of individuals who are helpless? The very people who depend on health workers such as me, for a second chance to life... a chance to live, to laugh, to smile, to cuddle in the hands of their loved ones one more time.
Images of the accident and emergency section where I work
If there's one thing I would want to improve in my town, it's the health care system.
Welcome to my town, Enugu, where nothing seems to ever turn out right in relation to the health system. Over the course of time, I've watched patients kick the bucket because of inadequate medical tools: drugs, equipment and even sometimes, staffs.
2 major Problems in the health sector:
- lack of basic medical tools;
Where I work, there aren't enough nebulizers to treat emergency cases for patients who are in respiratory distress. About a week ago, a patient who had difficulty in breathing was rushed into the accident and emergency section; the nurses and few doctors on call ran the whole length and breadth of the hospital in search of a nebulizer. To put things straight, all the available nebulizers were in use and there was no extra one for the male patient who gasped for air, frantically struggling for relief. How can a well licensed government owned hospital lack sufficient nebulizers? What happened to the taxes being collected? What happened to transparency? What about the millions budgeted to the health system? Did they just vanish into thin air?
We eventually lost the patient to the cold arms of death. These are the things that go down in my town and other states in the country. To be more precise, everything points towards the selfish desires of the Nigerian government. It's what happens when you have a failed system and a failed government.
2)Health care workers are underpaid.
How does a doctor or a nurse solve another person's problem when they haven't attended to their own personal needs? Perhaps this is the reason why doctors in my town or rather, in Nigeria, have a nonchalant attitude towards patients. They show no remorse when they need to, they turn a deaf ear to the emotional pleas of patients as though medicine were a business, forgetting the fact that they're dealing with humans and not bots. This is what frustration brings forth, this is what a failed system can do.
There are possible ways to proceed solution and improvement in the health system but the major one that needs to be tackled is:
Electing the right candidate into core political positions.
Once we have good leaders who are willing to change things and improve the standards of living, the system will be a whole lot better. There would definitely be adequate numbers of functioning equipment to save as many lives as possible if the need arises. The income of healthcare professionals will prolly increase to an amount sufficient enough for a better humane response and Interactions with patients.
It's quite sad to see my country fall. I wish our priorities could be placed right and proper attention be given to the health system. I wish the right leaders could be elected into power and not inebriated selfish individuals who claim to be "politicians."
The least I can do is to watch and provide better, professional and humane treatments to every patient I come across amidst the frustration and inadequacy while expecting the best.
Note: all images are mine
This is an an entry for the #Aprilinleo daily prompt. Check it out here