… Say hospitals can’t cope if Nigerians ignore prevention, rational drug use
By Chioma Obinna
As Nigeria battles a growing burden of chronic and non-communicable diseases, health experts have called for an urgent shift from hospital-centred healthcare to preventive self-care, warning that the country’s health system and household finances cannot withstand the rising cost of treating preventable illnesses.
The wellness experts spoke at the third edition of the D’Bio Wellness and Self-Care Summit in Lagos, where stakeholders stressed that individuals, families, pharmacists, healthcare professionals, communities and policymakers must work together to prevent disease and reduce pressure on hospitals.
Delivering the keynote address, Pharm. Olayinka Subair said the country must move from sickness care to self-care, arguing that many health outcomes are determined long before a patient reaches the consulting room.
According to him, self-care rests on five foundations, nutrition, physical activity, mental health, rational use of medicines and risk avoidance. “What you eat, how you move, how you manage stress, how you use drugs, supplements and services wisely, and how you avoid risks like smoking, unsafe practices or skipping screening” are central to health, he said.
Subair warned that failure to prioritise prevention would continue to expose Nigerians to avoidable illnesses and enormous treatment costs.
He said: “An approach that empowers people, reduces preventable complications and eases the burden on healthcare services is critical. When we support self-care intelligently, we improve outcomes, reduce the cost of treatment and strengthen the community.”
He noted that Nigeria’s primary healthcare system was already under pressure while many patients struggle to access care and afford prescribed treatment. “We are going to flip the discussion today from the hospital to you, to me, and focus on how we help ourselves,” he said.
Subair also urged policymakers to make healthy living more affordable through measures including taxation of sugary products and subsidies for fruits and vegetables.
“Let’s begin to tax sugar, increase the tax of sugar so that people will be forced to use less of it. Subsidise fruits and vegetables for people,” he said.
He challenged Nigerians to make physical activity part of everyday life, recommending at least 30 minutes of movement five days a week.
The pharmacist further called for mental health to be integrated into school and workplace programmes, describing a healthy mind as “the engine of all other self-care.”
He urged communities and faith leaders to stop treating mental health problems solely as spiritual issues and to encourage affected persons to seek appropriate medical care.
“Stress is a major cause of disease and sicknesses,” he said, adding that policymakers must take mental health seriously.
Subair said pharmacists, in particular, should take their counselling role seriously, helping patients use medicines rationally, avoid antibiotic misuse and monitor basic health indicators such as blood pressure and blood glucose.
“Clinical care has a place, but not the centre. Your role as healthcare professional is to enable self-care.”
He added that pharmacists could serve as an accessible first point of contact within primary healthcare, while community health workers should support education, follow-up and referral.
Subair said the ultimate objective was to build communities where prevention becomes the first line of defence.
“Hospitals will become for emergency and the community will be for prevention,” he said.
Speaking, the convener of the summit, Dr. Monica Hemben Eimunjeze, said self-care should be viewed as a deliberate investment in better health outcomes rather than an act of selfishness.
“Self-care is important for everybody. It helps us to prevent disease, to promote wellness and to make sure that we intentionally do those things that will help us have positive health outcomes,” she said.
Eimunjeze noted that non-communicable diseases, including hypertension, diabetes and high cholesterol, had assumed epidemic proportions, stressing that lifestyle choices could play a major role in prevention.
She said: “You have to be intentional. You have to be deliberate. You have to embrace those things that will help you — what you eat, how much you eat, whether you are exercising and whether you are compliant with your medications.”
Meanwhile, President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, PSN, Pharm. Tanko Ayuba, warned Nigerians against fake medicines and misleading health claims circulating on social media.
Ayuba said many counterfeit products were difficult for ordinary consumers to identify, stressing the importance of a reliable medicine distribution system.
“They clone them. But if we get our distribution system right, you can pick it from the point where you are buying the drug,” he said.
He particularly warned against online testimonials promoting purported medicines and treatments.
“Most of the social media products are misleading. Very misleading,” Ayuba said, alleging that artificial intelligence was being used to create fake endorsements involving prominent Nigerians.
“What they do, the dangerous thing is that they will get a prominent Nigerian and use AI to put words in his mouth,” he said.
He urged Nigerians not to be gullible when confronted with extraordinary health claims online.
“We should all be alert. And whenever you see something, we should not be gullible. There are some things we say: if it’s too good to be true, then it is too good to be true,” Ayuba said.
He clarified that the PSN was a professional body rather than a regulator, noting that the Pharmacy Council of Nigeria, PCN, remained the regulatory authority responsible for enforcing the law.
The experts also called for stronger collaboration among doctors, nurses, pharmacists, community health workers, families and policymakers.
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