(Personal verifiable story shared by Olu)

One morning in April 2018, I woke up hearing strange noises in Teaching Hospital, Obafemi Awolowo University. Curious to know what was going on, I asked one of the nurses just as I got out of my room in the ward where I was admitted the night before. I saw nurses packing up – the TVs, equipment – they were packing everything necessary.

“We are on strike”, the nurse replied sharply and started to walk away. I opened my mouth to speak only to find myself stuttering.

“What about my face? I just underwent a surgery and the operated spot is still fresh (without bandage); you said I would be operated again today”.

She just waved her hands in a carefree manner, “There is nothing we can do about that for now; the Hospital is on strike so, come back when we call off the strike”.

Her words struck me like the sting of bees. Somewhere inside of me, it still felt like a dream but I knew it was all real. My mind flashed to the previous day when my face was first operated. My face was split into two and opened apart. I remembered how the doctors battled for several hours, trying to stop the uncontrollable blood flow from my face. Over 5 liters of blood gushed out of my face during the operation. They were so terrified that I was admitted in the hospital that night.

At last, morning came and I was so relieved that after a long sleepless night of mosquito bites, excessive heat and unimaginable pain, my surgery would be completed.

“But how would I go back home without even a plaster, bandage or stitch closing the operated spot, I asked.” All my complaints fell on deaf ears and l was discharged without a stitch or bandage on my face – I was left with an OPEN WOUND for a whole day. Even when they eventually fixed a bandage the following day, the operated spot still wasn’t stitched. I spent #1,000 daily on bandages alone for over two weeks, yet the odor from the operated spot only got worse – the pain was unimaginable.

The Doctors at OAU Teaching Hospital knew that private hospitals could treat me but they would not tell me (If they referred us to a private hospital, they would be fired – I later found out). They kept me coming to the Hospital for weeks to change bandages while I carry my pain and odor around – with an unstitched wound! Meanwhile, they were still on strike. At this point, I had lost all hope. OAU Teaching Hospital was my last hope but they were just as cruel as the previous hospitals we had been to.

I went to the first hospital in February this year 2018 after discovering a small pimple on the left side of my face. At first, I just ignored it thinking it was one of those regular pimples. After two days, it increased to the size of a boil. As the day went by, the pimples became bigger. At this point, it became obvious that this wasn’t normal. We decided to visit a nearby Hospital – A private hospital in Haruna, Ogba. That was when my ordeals began.

On my first visit, the doctor, after examining my unusual boil, called it “a small growth”. He said I would be operated and the growth would be cut out as soon as I pay 45,000 naira for my treatment.

Suddenly, another Doctor walked in and saw me. He almost screamed. “What is this, he asked?” After a short disagreement between both doctors, they still could not tell what the boil was. “I don’t want to die”, I said to myself as I gently excused myself from the Hospital.

The following day, I went with my mum to General Hospital, Ifako - Ijaiye. After about 5 hours of waiting, we finally got to see the Doctor who re-directed me to a Private Hospital for Ultra Sound Scan. Very early the next day, I went back to the Hospital to present the results to the Doctor.

“The Doctor (their Oga) is not around; come back in three months”, they said without checking the results. My mom was very furious that she went straight into their office (Records) to challenge them.

“I am a Senior Staff of Lagos State”, she showed them her ID card. Immediately they saw her ID card, they changed the appointment date from three months to three weeks time.

Three weeks later when I got to the Hospital, the Doctor (their Oga) was still not around. By this time, both the size of the boil and the pain had increased greatly. The pain was so severe that I had to visit another hospital in Omole only to be re-directly back to an ENT specialist in General Hospital.

On my first meeting with the specialist, I was told to do a CT scan at a private hospital which cost over N36, 000. Three weeks after, when I took the results back to the Hospital, I was baffled with what I saw.

At 7:00am, over 100 people were already waiting outside the gate of General Hospital. Immediately the door was opened, people came trooping in, pushing one another. The crowd was so many that i had to wait on empty stomach for about 10 hours....

Continued on.............. https://www.dokita.ai/#/blog/detail/5bd63a246ebdbb14878b53a9

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Nigerian citizens continue to experience avoidable deaths; they continue to die of treatable illnesses due to the poor healthcare services in the country.
This has to STOP!.
Everything we do at www.dokita.ai is for no other reason but this. Search and find your hospital or pharmacy etc. Rate and write a review about your most recent experience. Let your story be a referral or deterrent for fellow citizens.

Good health care system is not a subject for debate, it is our right.

+++A true life story+++
Who is the next victim? Who is next to die in the hands of some quack hospital personnel? How many more shall we lose to the staggering inadequacies in health care system in the nation?
On 16th June 2017, I was sitting in the waiting room of the hospital when I witnessed one of the most saddening occurrences in my life - a young beautiful girl with a badly broken head rushed into the hospital.
Fresh warm blood gushed out of her forehead and nostrils. Her braided hair looked like it was dipped in a bucket of blood, it was dripping non-stop.
I could imagine the Devil smiling as her father fumbled with some blood-drenched clothes trying to stop the blood flow. But it wouldn't stop as the cut was so deep and severe.

Somebody help! He cried out as his voice shook with great fear. Two nurses sat idle at their table, so engrossed in their discussion that they didn't even look up to see the bleeding little girl.
"The Doctor went to shave"...continue reading https://www.dokita.ai/#/blog/detail/5ba428ce647bfd56db56dda0

Brain drain is defined as the migration of health personnel in search of the better standard of living and quality of life, higher salaries, access to advanced technology and more stable political conditions in different places worldwide.

Survey shows a looming brain drain in the Nigeria’s health sector in the rising trend of emigration of healthcare practitioners – physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and laboratory scientists amongst others.

A recent NOIPolls survey published in August 2017 revealed that the reasons for the looming brain drain in the health sector included challenges such as high taxes and deductions from salary (98 per cent), low work satisfaction (92 per cent), poor salaries and emoluments (91 per cent) and the huge knowledge gap that exists in the medical practice abroad (47 per cent), among others.


The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), a professional association Nigerian doctors and dentists Nigeria has about 72,000 medical doctors registered with only approximately 35,000 practicing in Nigeria. About 20,000 medical doctors are currently working outside the country.

“A total of $1 billion is lost annually to medical tourism in Nigeria. If you want to solve this problem you have to tackle the root cause of brain drain,” Clare Omatseye, the president, Healthcare Federation of Nigeria, (HFN).

Omatseye said, there is need for new strategies in reversing the brain drain as well as patient drain, an enabling framework and policies by the government that would encourage private sector participation in healthcare sector.


“Government needed to increase budgetary allocation to the health sector to achieve the desired growth and development. Allocation of a paltry 3.9 per cent of the national budget to the health sector in 2018 budget was far below 15 per cent Abuja declaration of 2001 by all Africa countries in 2001,”.

“80 per cent of the budgetary allocation to the health sector was for recurrent expenditure, with only 20 per cent for capital expenditure,” she said.

Brain drain is the major reason we have poor technology and scientific discoveries which could challenge the global giants


Reports show that Nigerian medical professionals seek work opportunities in United Kingdom, United States of America and other countries.


Analysts say a good economic condition will make most professionals to return or stay back in the country.


“The increasing frequency of doctors leaving in droves is no longer news in the health sector, it been bedevilled over the years in the country. Preference should be placed on our health sector so that necessary provisions will be made to enhance our health systems,”


“If federal governments, institutions corporate and create a platform for success in the sector and opportunity, then the country will increasingly get more talent wanting to stay back to serve the people well,” say Analysts.


Team Dokita.

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Changing the narratives in the Nigerian Healthcare Industry through user-generated reviews, ratings, and analytics..

Things You Need To Know About Hepatitis


The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the 28th of July as the World Hepatitis Day and the essence of that day is to draw attention to the disease which is often referred to as the silent epidemic.



Themed: Test, Treat Hepatitis”, this year’s world hepatitis day aimed at prevention, testing, treatment and care services; to improve partnerships and funding in the fight against the disease in other to showcase best practices and promote universal health coverage of hepatitis services.


According to WHO Viral hepatitis B and C are major health challenges, affecting 325 million people globally and they are root causes of liver cancer, leading to 1.34 million deaths every year.


“Worldwide, less than 20% of people had access to testing and treatment services for hepatitis B and C infections at the end of 2016.


The organisation said, “Hepatitis B and C are chronic infections that may not show symptoms for a long period, sometimes years or decades. At least 60 per cent of liver cancer cases are due to late testing and treatment of viral hepatitis B and C. Low coverage of testing and treatment is the most important gap to be addressed in order to achieve the global elimination goals by 2030.”


The president, the Guild of Medical Directors, Prof. Olufemi Dokun-Babalola, said Hepatitis is simply put an infection of the liver, usually caused by various subtypes of viruses.

Dokun-Babalola said these viruses are labelled A, B, C, D, and E and they can be transmitted by food and water intake (hepatitis A) or by contaminated blood through blood transfusions, shared needles, shared barbing tools, shared hair care implements, and rarely through sexual intercourse.

He said Hepatitis can cause serious damage to the liver, leading to cirrhosis and liver cancer called hepatoma, which is usually fatal.


He said, “Worldwide, the prevalence of hepatoma is about 4 per cent, but by comparison, the prevalence is much higher in Nigeria at about 10 per cent. Indeed it is estimated that 23 million Nigerians are infected with the disease. However, only 1 per cent or less of those who are affected know that they have the disease.


“This is why it is important that as many people as possible should be tested for the disease and avail themselves of treatment. Antiviral medications are particularly available for the treatment of Hepatitis C. Nevertheless, prevention is better than cure.”

However, many people with hepatitis have these symptoms mild flu, and may include diarrhoea, fatigue, loss of appetite, mild fever, muscle or joint aches, nausea, slight abdominal pain, vomiting, weight loss and jaundice.

As the disease progresses, chronic hepatitis can lead to progressive liver failure, , swelling of the lower extremities, confusion, and blood in the faeces or vomit, dark urine, itchy skin, yellow skin, whites of the eyes, and tongue.


Experts say hepatitis can be dangerous and difficult to treat, so people are advised to take precautions against possible infection.


“General hygiene, avoid sharing toothbrushes, razors, or manicure instruments, practice safe sex using condoms and consumption alcohol with moderation,” he advised.

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Eight days after the most recent Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was declared over, the country has confirmed it has found more cases of the disease.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has mobilised an emergency response team after the Congolese government confirmed that Ebola had struck North Kivu province, an eastern region notorious for its instability.

According to the Congolese health ministry, “At least 20 people have died after showing symptoms of haemorrhagic fever in and around the village of Mangina,

“Four samples taken from six people who have so far survived tested positive for Ebola, the ministry added.

However, the Director-General of WHO, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, said “Ebola is a constant threat in the DRC; what adds to our confidence in the country’s ability to respond is the transparency they have displayed once again.

“Working closely with the Ministry of Health and partners, we will fight this one as we did the last.’’

A total of 29 persons died during the most recent outbreak, which was declared over, when two weeks had passed without a new case emerging, following the release of the last patient from care.

Ebola Virus Disease is a rare disease that can lead to death mostly affecting human and non-human primates (monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees). It is caused by an infection with one of five known Ebola virus species, four of which can cause disease in human.

When infected, symptoms begin with sudden high fever, severe headache, muscle pain, weakness, fatigue, a sore throat and can increase rapidly to vomiting, diarrhoea and internal and external bleeding.

A distinct symptom of Ebola and other VHFs is unexplained bleeding from body openings. The symptoms may appear 2 to 21 days after exposure to an infection.

There is no cure for the disease. However, vaccine has also been developed to protect direct contacts of infected patients.

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Patients’ Bill of Rights was recently launched by Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria. This bill guarantees patient’s fair treatment and autonomy over medical decisions.

The bill gives patients right to relevant information in a language and manner the patient understands, including diagnosis, treatment, other procedures and possible outcomes and right of timely access to detailed and accurate medical records and available services.

If the bill is passed into law, patients will have the “Right to transparent billing and full disclosure of any cost, including recommended treatment plans, right to privacy and confidentiality of medical records, right to clean, safe and secure healthcare environment.



“Right to be treated with respect, regardless of gender, race, religion, ethnicity, allegations of crime, disability or economic circumstances, right to receive urgent, immediate, sufficient intervention and care, in the event of an emergency.



“Right to reasonable visitation in accordance with prevailing rules and regulations, right to decline care, subject to prevailing laws and upon full disclosure of the consequences of such a decision.

“Right to decline or consent to participation in medical research, experimental procedures or clinical trials, right to quality care in accordance to prevailing standards and right to complain and express dissatisfaction regarding services received.”

This bill is indeed the first of its kind in the Nigerian health sector and if it is passed into law, it has the tendency to improve the poor health indicators, prevent needless deaths in Nigeria and improve patients-doctors relationship, among other benefits.

According to the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, the goal of health services is to provide all patients with high quality health care in a manner that clearly recognises individual needs and rights.



Osinbajo said in order to effectively accomplish this goal, the patient and the health care provider must work together to develop and maintain optimum health, adding that government was not oblivious of the acute problem of the Nigerian healthcare challenges and was therefore, putting the right policies to address them.

The director-general of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Babatunde Irukera, said, “Essentially, our comfort, lives and life expectancy are in part determined by the quality and delivery of healthcare services.

“Indeed, there are standards, and there are examples of those who operate above those standards and some who even gave their lives for the standards, such as heroes and heroines like late Dr. Stella Adadevoh and some of her colleagues who have paid the utmost sacrifice in saving the lives of others.

“Yet, there are many, who unqualified, pass themselves off as professionals, and others, who though qualified do not know, nor live up to applicable standards. This bill will assist healthcare professionals and professional associations to identify and eliminate these quacks, and educate those who are qualified, but unaware of their obligations and the rights of their patients,” he explained.



The minister of health, Professor Isaac Adewole said the bill identifies rights and privileges in a Patient-Care Giver relationship for the protection of all parties. He said the bill will help to promote higher healthcare standards.

Adewole said, “We must ensure that people have right to information, the right to proper explanation of their medical situation; the right to control decision-making with respect to their treatment regimen; the right to know when to, where to and how to secure a second opinion where necessary.”

Let us keep hope alive that the bill does not end up in papers, but it is being passed into law and fully implemented.

Team Dokita.

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Despite some progress, Nigeria still battles with an increase in the incidence of frequent outbreaks of infectious diseases.



Nigeria and the rest of the world faces increased globalisation and urbanisation, different disease patterns thrive and increase in migration/travel across country borders, climate change, limited access to health care, flooding, as well as environmental degradation can create the conditions for epidemics.



Experts say unless emergency response capacity, primary health systems, infrastructure and surveillance is strengthened, the country will continue to have a growing threat to health and compromise economic development around the world.



The increasing frequency of disease outbreaks such as Ebola, Lassa fever, cholera Monkeypox, yellow fever and others pose a rising threat to the country.



According to statistics released by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Nigeria recorded six deaths and 228 suspected cases of Monkey pox – viral disease in 24 states and the Federal Capital Territory; 130 deaths and 2,238 suspected cases of Lassa fever – viral haemorrhagic illness in 21 States; and 223 deaths and 17,897 suspected cases of cholera in 17 States.

Still, towards ending disease epidemic in Nigeria, in its bid to strengthen the National strategy for reducing infectious diseases, prevent and control emerging epidemics the NCDC and the PHN have launched a new initiative – the Alliance for Epidemic Preparedness and Response (A4EPR).



The aim is to develop a formal structure for the private sector to support the Nigerian government through NCDC, in the prevention, preparedness, detection, response and control of outbreaks in Nigeria.



The A4EPR is designed to address priority areas in health security, focusing on building the capacity to protect the health of Nigerians.



These priority areas include purchase of equipment for outbreak preparedness and response; support to States during outbreaks; advocacy and communications as well as capacity development.



The chief executive officer, Chikwe Ihekweazu, NCDC, during the launch said that Infectious diseases do not respect borders or class. There is an urgent need for investment in preparedness and the time to prepare is NOW.



“Nigerian health care system to effectively prevent, protect, and respond to disease emergencies, and it is as important as, or more important than, an emergency response. It costs less to invest in advance and to be ready.

“These outbreaks affect the country’s economy through loss of labour, reduced productivity and inefficiency of businesses,” he added.



However, analyst says “there is an urgent need to put more efforts on surveillance and for availability of infrastructure, more functional primary health centre in the country, hence this will build the capacity to protect the health of citizens,”



“This new initiative will help Nigerians support each other to combat this reoccurrence of infectious diseases and strengthen partnership between State and Federal Governments, public-private partnerships,” says analyst.



Team Dokita.
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https://dokita.ai [Dokita. Artificial Intelligence]

Dokita is Nigeria’s first digital health care platform that connects health service providers with users. We are passionate about giving the common Nigerian a voice to change the narratives in the healthcare industry.

We leverage on user-generated reviews, ratings and data analytics to get insights about the performances and operations of the various health service providers and operators we have in the country. These insights form overall impressions and are published periodically to keep the citizens informed.

We look up to what Fitch Global and S&P has done in Economics and Finance and aspire to achieve similar feat in Nigeria healthcare sector.