A looming epidemic: combating the recurrent outbreaks of diphtheria in Nigeria.

Nigeria has endured several diphtheria outbreaks over the last few decades, mirroring a suboptimal population immunity across several demographics within the country. The country's northern region has been affected mainly by this infectious disease; it directly depicts the effect of poor DPT vaccine uptake amongst children in this region compared to other geopolitical zones in Nigeria. Whilst pharmaceutical intervention and surveillance activities have commenced as directed by the NCDC, to combat this public health menace, top leaders of the Nigerian healthcare system - public and private sectors, must understudy the predisposing factors gearing the recurrence of diphtheria in Nigeria and provide robust, research-based and scientific mechanisms to arrest the root causes of the incessant outbreaks. This article discusses the factors promoting the recurrent diphtheria outbreaks in Nigeria, the preexisting interventions with their existential deterrents, and new strategies recommended to curb the further resurgence of the disease.

Overtreatment of malaria in the Nigerian healthcare setting: prescription practice, rationale and consequences.

Nigeria is one of the countries in the world with the highest burden of malaria, accounting for a quarter of all cases in Africa. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, microscopic examination remains the gold standard for laboratory confirmation of malaria. However, the policy and practice of presumptive treatment of malaria for all febrile illnesses has been widely advocated in sub-Saharan Africa. Presumptive management of fevers and/or other symptoms of malaria results in over-diagnosis, and consequently overtreatment. This article discusses the overtreatment of malaria as practiced in Nigeria and other African regions against standard treatment guidelines, highlights a wide range of its associated effects on patients and proffers possible solutions to curb the unethical practice of malaria overtreatment.

Undergraduate medical education in Nigeria: current standard and the need for advancement.

The post-independence era in Nigeria ushered in an array of fundamental structuring and development in all sectors of the Nigerian economy including medical education and training. This era saw the establishment of medical schools across the country which mirrored the medical curriculum of British universities. This paper dives into the general structure of undergraduate medical education in Nigeria, its historical background and how it compares with neighboring and distant countries. Since the undergraduate medical education curriculum has not seen significant modifications since conception, this paper presents the challenges of the existent structure to include biased admission process, emphasis on irrelevant pre-medical courses, paucity of of technologically-advanced teaching and learning aids, increased workloads of lecturers amongst others. Importantly, solutions and recommendations are prescribed in this paper, which if considered, may improve undergraduate medical training in Nigeria, and ultimately improve the standard of healthcare service provision in the country.