A total of over 100,000 radiographers are needed in the country if the health and medical needs of over 170 million Nigerians are to be met maximally. Investigations have revealed that the current number is inefficient. Also, to make the profession more attractive to Nigerians, especially undergraduates,“There is a need to improve on the curriculum of radiographers in order to meet up with global trends. To this effect, we have set up fellowship programmes and training and we have also mandated a 5-man panel of experts to look at our curriculum and the review. So the white paper is available and has been sent to universities and other traditional institutions to ensure that the training of radiographers meets global standards and best practices. Radiography is technology dependent and it changes from time to time. It is dynamic.”
Okpeleke further stated that the role of radiographers in any health facility cannot be underestimated as they are needed in the detection of diseases with the aim of treatment and cure. “The contribution of radiographers is key and very important as there is no standard health facility that does not have a radiography or x-ray department and when we talk about radiography, we are talking about diseases and their diagnosis with an aim of treating them.” “We do have enough radiographers in the country and that is why we are doing this training. Infact, we have only five- six universities studying the course in Nigeria. We are also approaching other universities to see if they can appreciate the training and follow suit.”
Source: Leadership Online
