Health care service in a near collapse state in Northern Nigeria

Healthcare services are about to collapse in the northern part of the troubled Borno state as doctors, nurses and pharmacists run for their lives because of the ongoing violence unleashed by the radical Boko Haram sect. Growing health crisis means that mortality rates would rise, vaccination programmes severely affected and pressure would increase on the medical staff that remain. The situation is the worst in remote, rural areas near Borno's border with Cameroon, despite an increased military presence in the area. Boko Haram insurgents are interested to kidnap medical personnel, either for ransom or to treat wounded fighters. Many pharmacies, mostly run by Christians, were looted and damaged, or burnt down completely. Vaccination Programmes At Risk The insecurity has forced local people to move into neighbouring Cameroon in search of treatment. The violence against immunisation workers have affected programmes. For instance, at least nine people were killed in February 2013, when gunmen stormed two vaccination clinics in the northern city of Kano, therefore many children did not receive their protection from the virus. According to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, there were 53 recorded cases of polio in Nigeria in 2013, just over half were in Borno and neighbouring Yobe, which is also under emergency rule and suffering from Boko Haram attacks. Staff Is Under Pressure Difficulties in supplying drugs to violence-affected areas, closure of pharmacies boosted the costs of medication by 35%, according to the locals. The closure of healthcare facilities in rural areas has added extra pressure on those who remain in cities. Maiduguri hospitals are having staff shortages. A doctor of Maiduguri hospital, Kabiru Ibrahim narrated that two of the hospital's three orthopaedic surgeons have left, while many senior specialists were either on leave of absence or sabbatical pending an end to the violence. "Patients with special ailments like HIV, diabetic and hypertensive patients need to access drugs at regular intervals and those drugs can only be found in Maiduguri. "But these types of patients are sometimes denied the chance to come and take their drugs due to Boko Haram carrying out highway attacks," he added