Doctoring as business: A study of entrepreneurial medicine in Nigeria

Abstract

Medicine is often regarded as a philanthropic science in the service of humanity. Rather than universalistic humanitarian service (à la Hippocrates), this study of private practice illustrates that medicine has been commoditised and is now a lucrative business much like the sale of beer and other commodities. This growing medical enterprise is explained against the backdrop of the wider dynamics of the Nigerian political economy. The implications of this growing privatisation and commercialisation, of which the doctoring business is a part, are examined. It is concluded that it is only a question of time before entrepreneurial medicine completely eclipses the beleaguered public medical system.

What does quality maternity care mean in a context of medical pluralism? Perspectives of women in Nigeria

“…There are also widespread reports of pregnant women, among others, dying at the doorsteps of private hospitals and clinics for failure to meet the deposit requirements or while their companions are still haggling over deposits. When such deposits are exhausted, treatment is frequently withheld or women held hostage until additional payment is made ( Alubo 1990 ; Izugbara et al 2016 ). Nigeria’s informal maternity health services sector is also poorly regulated with few efforts to address prevalent excesses and charlatanism ( Izugbara and Krassen Covan 2014 ).…”

Ethnomedicine and dominant medicine in multicultural Australia: a critical realist reflection on the case of Korean-Australian immigrants in Sydney

“…Korean hanbang doctors seem to have pursued 'doctoring as a business' in a fairly proactive manner [cf. [56]]. The services provided by biomedical doctors in particular were accorded legitimacy and rarely questioned.…”

Breaking the Wall of Silence: Aids Policy and Politics in Nigeria

“…Patronage of public medical facilities has decreased because of the cost recovery and reimposition of user fees, part of the structural adjustment programs. Nigerians are compelled to use a system of private medical sources (14,15), AIDS Policy and Politics in Nigeria / 553 which, we might note in passing, is generally rudimentary, unregulated, and full of unregistered practitioners and pretenders. 2 It therefore seems logical that many practitioners might not keep records, to avoid leaving any trace.…”

“…The situation of economic adversity and the structural adjustment that has fueled it have led to far-reaching changes in social welfare. In place of free medical care, fees (variously called the Bamako Initiative, or cost sharing) are now charged (13,14,29). But without any safety nets, those unable to afford the costs are either turned away or held hostage until fees are paid (13,14).…”