HEALTH SYSTEM

Nigerian Health Care System



Nigerian Health Care System

Abstract

The concept of public health deals with the health care services that a country provides to its people. The main functions of public health include providing adequate, timely and quality health care to the people, in addition to tracking, monitoring, and controlling the disease outbreak. This paper deals with the health care system of developing country, Nigeria, which has high adult and child mortality rates. The aim of the study is to review the health care state of the country, and provide recommendations for the health care practitioners to improve the system.

Introduction: [NIGERIA]

Federal Government of Nigeria comprises of 36 states, and a Federal Capital Territory (Nove A., 2011). This section of the paper presents a brief introduction of the selected country, Nigeria.

Location/Geography

Nigeria Locates in the West of Africa, it is diverse both climatically and geographically. The country shares land border in west with Benin, in east with Chad and Cameroon, and in the north with Niger. In the south, the Nigerian coast lies on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the fourteenth largest country in Africa continent.

Population

The population of Nigeria is 156.051 million, according to the records of year 2011. The 35% of

people forms the urban population of the country, while the rular-urban migration rate is 5.3%. The most populated zone of the country is South East. The country accommodates 374 identifiable ethnic groups, and the country has a young age profile, with 45% of population aged under 15.

Government

The country is the federal republic, inspired by the US model of government. The president exercises the executive power, he acts both, as head of state as well as head of government. The national assemble which includes the two bodies, the House of Representatives and the Senate, is responsible for law making activities of the country.

Economy

Nigeria operates a mixed economy, which means that the private sector also directs the economy in addition to the government. The country has considerable political and economic autonomy. In fact, some states in Nigeria have resources, which lie above at scale, when compare to the annual budgets of many countries in the sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, Nigeria considers as one of the most developed countries of Africa that relies highly on its petroleum exports. Also, it has the second largest stock exchange in the African continent.

State of Health

Key Determinants of Health

There are many factors which affect the health of any population group (WHO, 2012). The main determinants of health include the social and economic environment, physical environment, and the person's individual behavior and characteristics. The factors of nutrition, mobility, morbidity and height generally determine the health status of any country (Odior E.S., 2011).

Especially for the rural public of Nigeria, poverty is the major issue, due to which they often engage in low standard nutrition practices. People hardly get diet which complies with their nutrition need. As a result, common health issues such as weakness, anemia, and viral attacks ...