‘Nigeria Must Fast-Track Diagnostic Policy For Rural Healthcare’

A firm, Cerba-Lancet Laboratories Nigeria, has said Nigeria needs urgent policy action to expand access to quality diagnostic services in rural communities.

Speaking in an interview with journalists in Lagos, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Cerba-Lancet Laboratories, Dr Olayemi Dawodu, called for the rapid development and implementation of policies that would enable internationally accredited diagnostic laboratories to reach underserved communities across the country.

She said pathology services should be accessible to every Nigerian, including those living in remote areas, stressing that while rural health facilities may not have sophisticated equipment, they should be equipped with validated and calibrated technologies capable of delivering reliable test results.

According to her, emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), automation and telepathology can significantly improve access to specialist diagnostic services in underserved communities.

Dawodu explained that under a telepathology model, community health workers can collect and prepare samples locally before transmitting scanned slides electronically to pathologists in urban centres for analysis and reporting, eliminating the need for patients to travel long distances.

She, however, noted that technology alone would not address the country’s diagnostic challenges, saying effective implementation would require collaboration among health authorities, telecommunications regulators, network providers and educational institutions to provide the necessary infrastructure.

The Cerba-Lancet CEO said diagnostic technologies could transform Nigeria’s healthcare system over the next decade if policymakers and other stakeholders actively support their deployment instead of limiting them to pilot projects.

She called for regular roundtable discussions and think tanks to accelerate the adoption of innovative diagnostic solutions, adding that recent engagements on telemedicine indicate growing interest in digital healthcare.

Dawodu also identified the shortage of healthcare professionals, driven largely by brain drain, as a major challenge, saying digital technologies have become essential for bridging service delivery gaps.

She urged the Federal Government to prioritise telemedicine, including telepathology, as part of national healthcare policy, noting that some organisations are already partnering with state and local governments to deploy solar-powered, multilingual telemedicine kiosks capable of operating without internet data in underserved communities.