Nigeria’s healthcare system may need more hospitals and doctors, but fixing the industry’s hidden operational inefficiencies will have a bigger impact on improving patient care than simply building new health facilities, according to health technology company Medismarts.
The company said while conversations around healthcare reform often focus on expanding infrastructure and increasing funding, the real challenge slowing healthcare delivery lies in the administrative processes that happen before and after a patient receives treatment.
From patient verification and health insurance approvals to claims processing, reconciliation and payments, these behind-the-scenes activities determine how quickly patients receive care and how efficiently hospitals, healthcare providers and Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) operate.
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“A patient does not care how many internal processes happen before they see a doctor. They only know how long they waited. Healthcare also needs better operations. Operations determine how efficiently everything else
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