How To Spot A Fake Practitioner In The Medical World In Nigeria

Fake in medical world

There is no doubt there are lots of quacks and fake medical personnel practicing in Nigeria. This is because the news is rife with their activities from villages to cities. Their activities are more in the villages. Their activities have led to so many complications and worst still death. Some have been practicing for years without hindrance unknown to the public.

The reason for this is because the hands on deck are limited and few, and the space to cover is much and big. The government alone cannot see all the nooks and crannies of this country.

The job to fish out these quacks should not be left with the regulatory agencies alone to do. The effect is on all of us. It is best we all join hand in the fight of this menace. This can save lives and protect the future generation.

There are fake hospitals managed by fake and quack Medical Doctors, Pharmacist and other health care providers. Fortunate for us, the government have place tools on the ground to help curb this menace using modern technology. Although, not in all cases. Since we are in the jet age, we all can win this battle. These tools have been used by foreign countries successfully. These do not affect Nigeria only. Just that it is much in Nigeria.

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To know a fake, it is better and easy to know how genuine ones are. It makes it easier than trying to study how all fake behave.

Hospital

Just go to any major city or town in Nigeria and you will be surprised at the number of private hospitals we have. These hospitals carry all sought of activities. Some may even go beyond the operations they have been approved to carry out. This is even worse in the villages where little or no regulatory activities are carried out.

It is not easy to spot a fake hospital in the cities. This is because many of them operate like real hospitals. Even some staffs may not be aware that they work for a fake establishment. Most at times, these fake were once fully registered hospital that lost their license.

Fake hospital in the villages operates in otherwise local setting deceiving the villagers to be trained and register. They tend to win the hearts of the villages ones some form of treatment they offer is active. The villagers fear to question their authority. They carry all sorts of activities which could be detrimental to the health of the people.

How To Spot A Fake Hospital

1. Genuine hospitals must have a name. The name can be found on the signboard.
2. The location of a fake hospital is usually hidden if the hospital has been planned to operate illegally from the onset. However, this is different for hospitals who have have been operated before their licence was revoked.
3. The attitudes of the staff of a fake hospital can be easy to spot. They tend to threaten patients who are curious about any process of treatment which is not obtainable in a  genuine hospital.
4. Lastly, take the name of the hospital and check the internet if it has been registered. Better still , visit this blog (not official website by the government) for a complete list. Th list may be updated when new hospitals are added or old ones de-listed. A hospital with no name and refuses to give out their name or registration number is a fake.

After all these, please report them to the nearest police or Federal Ministry of Health (F.M.H) office.

Medical Doctor

Most fake medical doctors had training, which they use during practice. The training could be half for school dropout or full for those whose license has been revoked or they were people who have worked with qualified medical personnel in the past. Because of this fact, they know little of medicine and how to pretend to be Medical doctors.

Read Also: The Process Of Obtaining Treatment In A Nigerian Government Hospital

Only fake medical doctors mount fake clinics. These fakes carry out illegal activities easily like abortion without due process.

How To Spot A Fake Medical Doctor

1. Most medical doctors have a very bad handwriting. Do not ask me why. If a patient can read a prescription, it is a sure sign that person is fake.
2. Also, medical doctors have some form of dress code. Western attire, with a white apron or some standard coloured apron. Most fakes adopt this but the experts know how to carry themselves in it. Fake ones find it difficult to.
3. Always boost of an absolute cure for each treatment.
4. They tend to provide a solution for every disease without referral.
5. Lastly, a very easy method is to take the name or the registration number of the medical doctor, visit this blog (not official website by the government) and the name and registration number will be displayed. A medical doctor that refuses to provide his name or registration number is a sure fake. Also, the list of fake medical doctors can be found in this website (official by the government).
6. To curb the menace of a fake medical doctor, the government of Nigeria have decided to launch a program whereby genuine medical doctors will provide a stamp. This stamp will contain the Nigeria Medical Association (N.M.A) logo, the identity of the medical doctor, year of registration and other measures. The stamp will be used on any medical prescription and can be reflected through an ultra-violet light.

Pharmacists

Pharmacists own pharmacy shop. Due to the shortage of pharmacy shops in Nigeria, a lot of patent medicine dealers have started parading themselves as pharmacists to deceive Nigerians. Some are also in hospitals and other sectors. It is easy to spot one. They are mostly found in patent medicine shops and fake hospitals.

How To Spot A Fake Pharmacist In The Hospital

1. They are also well dressed.
2. They should know about the drugs being given.
3. Should be free to give out their name or registration number. With that, you can know if they are genuine or not. Once you have the name or registration number, visit and check online just as in the explanation below.

How To Spot A Pharmacist In the pharmacy shop

1. The name of the shop must be boldly displayed with the pharmacy symbol.
2. It must be up to the standard of a pharmacy shop in Nigeria. Some of the standards are that such shop should not be located in a park, garage, market or very busy area. The shop should be spacious and be conducive.
3. The pharmacist is well dressed as a symbol of the profession. 
4. Even when the shop is composed of other staffs, a pharmacist can be spotted among them.
5. The pharmacist will be friendly and understanding.
6. Ask for the name of the pharmacist or registration number. Any one who declines that is a fake. Now take that name or registration number to this website (official by the government), input the details and the official details of the pharmacist will come out.

For the other pharmacist in other sectors, they hardly have contacts with patients. However, to check if they are registered, follow the process above with their name and or registration number.

How To Spot Fake Medical Personnel

To spot other medical personnel is similar. However, medical personnel that do not undergo the process of registration will be difficult to detect with the above online means. Also, most of these other medical personnel do not have mark of identification. However, most at times, their activities do not pose much treats to the health of the patients.

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