Product Analysis 1

Product Analysis

Global Economics

Introduction
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Nigeria is home to 250 ethnic tribes. (Countries and their Cultures, n.d.) And with a population of

approximately 199,588,724 million people making Nigeria the biggest country in Africa

(WorldOMeters, n.d.) They also have one of the poorest healthcare system. More than 92,000 of

new cases of breast cancer is coming from Africa. (World Health Organization, n.d.) In sub-Saharan

Africa, one in four people who are diagnosed with cancer has breast cancer and is responsible for

one of the five people cancer deaths. (Dodo, 2015) Nigeria have to take action to prevent the late

detection of breast cancer in women.

Healthcare Services

Nigeria is currently ranked as the second poorest country for health, after India. (NEWSPAPERS,

2019) The government has made many improvement throughout the years such as

- Improving healthcare service access in rural communities spread across the country through

innovative partnerships.

- Implementation of quality of care

- Improvement of programs that encourage performance based incentives

- Better resource management that ensures accountability through strategic purchasing

mechanisms

- Pragmatic monitoring and evaluation program to track performance for reviews and adjustment

that improve outcomes

(NEWSPAPERS, 2019)

Although the ministry has mention that they are working with health experts to develop a

comprehensive cancer control policy to try to improve its weak cancer data collection. The universal
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coverage insurance was also launched in Nigeria that would cover cancer treatment, but the details

"were still worked out." due to government issues. (World Health Organization , 2012)

Mobile mammography

With so many rural tribes, having a mobile mammography van can help reach and tackle down the

barriers of transportation that women have. Per the World Health Organization, The lack of access

to radiography equipment, particularly for rural women, is a serious problem. (World Health

Organization , 2012) A benefit of the having a mobile mammography reduce many of the obstacles

that breast cancer screenings faces for the underserved women. (Guse, 2017)

Acceptance

Having a mobile mammography service in Nigeria, would be very acceptance. Taking into

consideration the efforts that the government have “attempt” to improve their healthcare system, this

service will play a big part in reaching that because the government knows it is a concern, and it

more female’s in the country fighting for more rights and empowerment. An article from PUNCH

mention that, with the arrival of the mobile mammogram it would help the fight against breast

cancer in the country. There have been several awareness campaigns on breast cancer, but now is the

time for action. This equipment will help women in detecting the disease early because this machine

would meet them where they work, trade and worship. It has been designed for their convenience.

(Dumo, 2018)

In a recent article from the World Health Organization, Government and partners redouble efforts to

beat breast cancer in Nigeria, mentioned how the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) is working
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with a number of partners including WHO to campaign to make cancer treatment services available

and increase awareness towards access to quality care. (Abuja, 2018)

Income – Cost of Healthcare

In Nigeria, Poverty and lack of resources are major problems. About 86.9 million Nigerians now

living in extreme poverty representing nearly 50% of its estimated population. (Kazeem, 2019)

Most women in Nigeria are housewives or farmers with families to take care of, thus there is no free

time for medical check-ups. Per the most recent data, the average income a middle-class Nigerian

make is about ₦30000 per month, which is about $83.33 USD. (Udo, 2019)

Of their income, approximately only 2% is spent on healthcare, the rest was spent on: 51% food,

31% on fuel, and 8% on education. (Encyclopedia of the Nations, n.d.)

Considering the cost of health care, Health care is through an uneven mix of various mechanisms.

First, through government budget allocations; second, through out-of-pocket payments; third,

through health insurance (social and private); and lastly, through external funding. (Shobiye, 2012)

Majority of Nigerians have to pay the costs of their own healthcare out of their own pockets at the

time of seeking treatment, is not equitable because it undeniably limits access only to those who can

afford it (the rich) and excludes the poorest members of society. (Shobiye, 2012) Only 1 percent of

the population have health insurance.

In Nigeria, out of pocket cost is a huge burden and a great deal of financial risk and restricts them

from having direct access to health care when they need it. “You have to make a deposit before we

can treat the patient” is what patients and relatives are greeted by when they visit a health facilities

in Nigeria. (The Lancet, 2016)

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Per recent data from the World Health Organization (WHO), considering the cost to stay or visit a

health care center, a Nigerian will have to save or used up more than one fourth or half of their

monthly income just to visit a health care facility.

HOSPITAL COSTS

Cost per bed day by hospital level*

USD ($) Naira (₦)

Primary 2.70 973.21

Secondary 3.53 1,269.66

Tertiary 4.82 1,734.20

Cost per outpatient visit by hospital level*

USD ($) Naira (₦)

Primary 0.71 254.24

Secondary 1.00 360.62

Tertiary 1.48 533.46

HEALTH CENTRE COSTS

Cost per visit at health center by population coverage for a 20 minute visit**

USD ($) Naira (₦)

50% 1.33 479.20

80% 1.44 516.88

95% 2.16 778.01

(World Health Organization (WHO), n.d.)

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Resources of Professional Medical Workers

One of the biggest concerns in the healthcare of Nigeria is their resource of doctors. According to

the World Health Organization (WHO), Nigeria has one of the highest doctor to population ratio in

Africa, with a ratio of 1 doctors to 5000 people, a lot of them are becoming brain drain. (Banke-

Thomas, 2018) Each week doctors are emigrating and finding work somewhere else, at least 12

Nigerian in one week gets employed in the United Kingdom and more than 4000 are practicing in

the United States and Canada. (Adepoju, 2018) Doctors are emigrating due to get better facilities

and work environment, higher pay and career progression which is what Nigeria health system is

lacking. At the same time, the government is not doing anything to convince them to stay.

At the same time, there are also not enough female workers in the Nigeria health system. Due to

cultural beliefs of some of the women, the services have to be performed by a female worker.

Substitution

Although cost is a big factor and barriers for women to get adequate quality of health care. A

substitution to using western medicine and practice, Nigerian women will choose to use traditional

medicine and/or alternative treatments first and if breast cancer symptoms have worsened that is

when they will report to the hospitals. The reason is because it is more affordable and convenient for

them.

Awareness

The first step to getting more women to screen and use a mobile mammography is bring awareness

about the breast cancer. In Nigeria, the majority of women diagnosed with breast cancer do not

survive because their cancer is detected too late. (World Health Organization , 2012) Currently,
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there is an organization in Nigeria known as the Breast Cancer Association of Nigeria (BRECAN)

which is an organization that brings awareness about breast cancer through public education, patient

support, advocacy and research. (World Health Organization , 2012)

Conclusion

Bringing in a mobile mammography service to Nigeria will be very successful. With a good support

from the government, Nigerian women will benefit a lot from this; gaining better awareness, better

health, and better life expectancy. The healthcare system will improve and it is important to notes

that with this service it can save lives with early diagnoses.
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References

Abuja. (2018, October 27). Government and partners redouble efforts to beat breast cancer in

Nigeria. Retrieved from World Health Organization:

https://afro.who.int/news/government-and-partners-redouble-efforts-beat-breast-cancer-

nigeria

Adepoju, P. (2018, November 20). Nigeria's medical brain drain. Retrieved from Devex:

https://www.devex.com/news/nigeria-s-medical-brain-drain-93837

Banke-Thomas, D. A. (2018, October 15). The emigration of doctors from Nigeria is not today’s

problem, it is tomorrow’s. Retrieved from Africa at LSE:

https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/africaatlse/2018/10/15/the-emigration-of-doctors-from-nigeria-is-

not-todays-problem-it-is-tomorrows/

Countries and their Cultures. (n.d.). Nigeria. Retrieved from Countries and their Cultures:

https://www.everyculture.com/Ma-Ni/Nigeria.html

Dodo, A. M. (2015, November 11). What's Stopping Nigerian Women from being Screened for

Cancer? Retrieved from The Conversation: http://theconversation.com/whats-stopping-

nigerian-women-from-being-screened-for-cancer-49995

Dumo, E. (2018, July 5). Ambode unveils first mobile mammogram in Nigeria. Retrieved from

Punch: https://punchng.com/ambode-unveils-first-mobile-mammogram-in-nigeria/

Encyclopedia of the Nations. (n.d.). Nigeria - Income . Retrieved from Encyclopedia of the

Nations: https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Nigeria-INCOME.html
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Guse, L. (2017, November 29). 5 Benefits of Mobile Mammography: Saving Lives and

Expanding Markets. Retrieved from LifeLineMobile:

http://info.lifelinemobile.com/blog/5-benefits-of-mobile-mammography-saving-lives-

expanding-markets

Kazeem, Y. (2019, June 25). Nigeria has become the poverty capital of the world. Retrieved

from Quartz Africa: https://qz.com/africa/1313380/nigerias-has-the-highest-rate-of-

extreme-poverty-globally/

NEWSPAPERS, T. (2019, February 16). Setting Healthcare Agenda for Nigeria. Retrieved from

This Day: https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2019/02/16/setting-healthcare-agenda-

for-nigeria-1/

Shobiye, H. (2012, May 07). Paying For Health in Nigeria. Retrieved from Nigerians Talk:

https://nigerianstalk.org/2012/05/07/paying-for-health-in-nigeria-part-1/

The Lancet. (2016, June 18). Out-of-pocket payments in Nigeria. Retrieved from The Lancet:

https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(16)30798-X.pdf

Udo, B. (2019, April 19). Labour demands immediate implementation of national minimum wage

bill. Retrieved from Premium Times: https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/more-

news/326068-labour-demands-immediate-implementation-of-national-minimum-wage-

bill.html

World Health Organization . (2012, March 3). Awareness is the first step in battle against breast

cancer. Retrieved from World Health Organization (WHO):

https://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/90/3/12-030312/en/
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World Health Organization (WHO). (n.d.). Estimates of Unit Costs for Patient Services for

Nigeria. Retrieved from World Health Organization (WHO):

https://www.who.int/choice/country/nga/cost/en/

WorldOMeters. (n.d.). Nigeria Population. Retrieved from World-O-Meters:

http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/nigeria-population/