Nigeria faces shortage of public health physicians amid wider doctor deficit — APHPN

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 Key points

• Nigeria’s shortage of public health physicians linked to broader deficit of medical doctors.
• Migration and limited training capacity weaken the healthcare workforce pipeline.
• Experts warn of growing reliance on task shifting and gaps in community-level healthcare delivery.

Main story

The President of the Association of Public Health Physicians of Nigeria (APHPN), Dr Terfa Kene, has raised concerns over a critical shortage of public health physicians in Nigeria, attributing the situation to a broader deficit of medical doctors nationwide.

Kene made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja, noting that the shortage of doctors has significantly constrained the country’s ability to train and deploy specialists required for effective public health practice.

He explained that public health physicians play a vital role in community-based healthcare delivery, focusing on prevention, policy implementation, and health interventions across multiple sectors.

According to him, the profession requires prior qualification as a medical doctor, making the limited number of doctors a key bottleneck in building a robust public health workforce.

The issues

Nigeria’s healthcare system continues to grapple with workforce shortages, exacerbated by migration of skilled professionals seeking better opportunities abroad and limited capacity for training new specialists.

The deficit has led to increased reliance on task shifting, where community health workers and extension officers fill roles typically handled by medical officers of health.

Additionally, the absence of accurate data on the number of public health physicians complicates workforce planning and policy development.

What’s being said

Kene noted that APHPN has over 3,000 registered members, though this does not reflect the total number of practitioners nationwide due to gaps in registration and varying professional qualifications.

He emphasised that public health physicians are integral to Nigeria’s healthcare system, particularly in epidemic response, policy formulation, and service delivery at local, state, and federal levels.

He also highlighted ongoing efforts by the association to improve healthcare delivery through innovation, including plans to establish a national secretariat and residential estate to enhance coordination and welfare among members.

The APHPN president further disclosed plans to integrate telemedicine services into the project, aimed at expanding access to healthcare in underserved and remote communities.

What’s next

The association is seeking support from government, organisations, and the public to fund its infrastructure and innovation initiatives, including telemedicine deployment.

Stakeholders are also expected to intensify advocacy for increased investment in medical education, workforce retention strategies, and improved working conditions to curb migration.

Bottom line

Nigeria’s shortage of public health physicians reflects deeper systemic challenges in the healthcare workforce, with urgent reforms needed to strengthen training, retention, and data systems to ensure effective healthcare delivery nationwide.