Nigeria has only about 300 oncology nurses, cancer care at risk, experts warn
- Nurse leaders say Nigeria has roughly 300 oncology nurses for a country recording over 100,000 new cancer cases a year.
- They want better pay and welfare for specialist nurses, and more training places, with only two institutions currently training them.
- The nurses also want a seat at the table when health policy decisions are made.
Nigeria is battling a serious shortage of nurses specially trained to care for cancer patients, and nursing leaders say the gap is putting treatment at risk.
Speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja, the experts put the number of oncology nurses in the country at about 300. That is against a caseload the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT) puts at between 102,000 and 127,763 new cancer cases every year, with roughly 72,000 to 79,542 deaths.
Prof. Khadijat Musah, Dean of the Faculty of Nursing Sciences at the Federal University Otuoke in Bayelsa State, gave the estimate. She said the country does not have enough specialists to cope with the growing number of patients, and that trained nurses leaving for jobs abroad are making things worse.
Musah asked the government to look into the welfare of oncology nurses. She also said only two institutions in Nigeria currently train them, taking up to 50 candidates each depending on resources. Some universities have started postgraduate programmes in the field, including masters and doctoral degrees, she added.
Why it matters to patients
Oncology nurses stay close to patients through diagnosis, treatment and recovery. Musah said that closeness is why their voices should count. "Our voices need to be heard because we are patient advocates," she said.
Ann Joachim, an oncology nurse, said the shortage means staff are stretched thin. She said nurses give up their time, talent and skill to gain the specialty, yet are not paid enough for it, and they also face health risks that come with cancer care.
Even so, she urged young nurses to consider the field, pointing to the compassion and the chance to help fight the disease.
Fatima Adam, Vice-President of the Oncology Nursing Society of Nigeria, who works at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Katsina, said no cancer care team is complete without an oncology nurse, who is by the patient's side around the clock. She wants nursing students introduced to oncology early so more of them choose it.
Nanre Mampak, an oncology nurse and educator with more than 20 years' experience, said nurses are often left out when health decisions are made. "Let us make nurses fully inclusive in decision-making in the health sector," she said.
What happens next is unclear: the nurses made appeals but no government response or new funding was announced.