Health practitioners have condemned the devastating effects of medical misdiagnosis, calling for a collaborative approach to tackle its often multifactorial causes.
The experts shared their views in interviews with reporters on Friday in Lagos.
Dr Caleb Yakubu, Consultant Radiologist and Coordinator of the One-Stop-Breast Clinic at Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), said misdiagnosis can arise from multiple factors and seriously harm patients.
He pointed to faulty or low-quality equipment as a major issue, noting that some laboratory personnel, driven by profit, compromise diagnosis by using fake or substandard tools.
Yakubu added that obsolete equipment is common because many facilities—public and private—cannot afford modern replacements, while some personnel lack the necessary competence for certain tests.
“Sometimes diagnostic kits and chemicals are fake. Due to selfish profiteering, personnel use them anyway, leading to misdiagnosis or error.
“Most kits are not only fake but also low-quality, predisposing users to wrong results. A pregnant woman could even be wrongly diagnosed as non-pregnant,” he said.
To solve the problem, Yakubu called for stricter regulation of diagnostic kit imports to allow only certified, standardized products into Nigeria.
He also advocated improved collaboration among professionals, capacity building, and regular training to ensure competency, explaining that teamwork would enable facilities to refer complex cases for better patient outcomes.
Radiographer Dr Oluwole Umor identified limited investigations—caused by obsolete/substandard equipment, poor funding, inexperienced staff, or profit motives—as another major driver of diagnostic errors.
He stressed the urgent need for adequate funding of health facilities and a functional National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to address these issues.
Umor explained that proper funding would tackle obsolete equipment and staff training, while an effective NHIS would help patients afford necessary tests.
Laboratory Scientist Mr Adeleke Olubo said patients and relatives also play a role in preventing misdiagnosis by providing accurate health information.
He described accurate diagnosis as essential for effective patient and disease management and listed consequences of misdiagnosis, including wasted resources, higher mortality, longer hospital stays, death, depression among patients/relatives, and increased strain on healthcare workers.
Olubo reiterated the need for collaboration among medical personnel, urging them to reject all forms of compromise and always prioritize patient health and interest.
