Ophthalmologists Migration Costs Nigeria $150,000 Each Yearly –Society

The Ophthalmological Society of Nigeria (OSN) says the migration of one ophthalmologist could cost the Nigerian economy about 150,000 dollars annually, amid growing concerns over the country’s eye-care workforce deficit.

The President of the society, Dr Gloria Patrick-Ferife, disclosed this in a communiqué issued on Saturday at the end of the 51st Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Scientific Conference of the OSN in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the three-day conference, had the theme: “Re-imagining Eye Care in the Digital Era”.

Patrick-Ferife said the loss of skilled ophthalmologists due to migration was compounding existing shortages and creating difficulties in providing equitable access to specialised eye care services.
She called on the federal, state and local governments to employ more ophthalmologists and other eye-care professionals, particularly in rural and underserved communities.

According to her, inadequate employment opportunities, insecurity and poor distribution of health workers have contributed to the concentration of specialists in major population centres.
She said the country must urgently strengthen its eye-health workforce and create an enabling environment that retains skilled professionals.

The OSN president also expressed concern over the burden of visual impairment in Nigeria, saying more than 24 million Nigerians were living with some form of visual impairment.
She said cataract, glaucoma, uncorrected refractive errors and diabetic retinopathy remained among the leading causes of blindness and visual impairment.

Patrick-Ferife said that about 84 per cent of visual impairment and blindness in the country was preventable or treatable, stressing the need for early detection, appropriate treatment and improved access to eye-care services.
She said the theme of the conference reflected the urgent need for Nigeria to leverage technology, innovation and data to address gaps in eye-care delivery.

According to her, artificial intelligence, tele-ophthalmology, digital imaging, electronic medical records, simulation-based training and data-driven research are creating new opportunities to expand access to quality eye care.

She, however, cautioned that technological advancement must not compromise ethics or replace the human expertise required in patient care.