Health

Sajid Javid: patients on waiting lists need not go private as ‘NHS can manage’

Sajid Javid has urged patients stuck on lengthy waiting lists not to go private, insisting “the NHS can manage it,” as he pledged to use his position as the first minority ethnic health secretary to tackle racial disparities in health.

Speaking to the Guardian as he marks 100 days in the post, the health secretary declined to say when the NHS would be able to clear the post-pandemic backlog.

But asked if he would encourage patients to resort to using private healthcare to expedite their treatment, Javid said: “No. That’s always a choice for people that can afford it, and that’s up to them. But it’s not certainly something I would be recommending to anyone.”

He added: “I don’t want a situation where too many more people just stop [using the health service] … because I want them to use the NHS. The NHS can manage it.”

Jon Ashworth, the shadow health secretary, said last week that long waiting lists were in danger of leading to privatisation of the NHS, as patients desert it in favour of private providers.

The Institute for Public Policy Research thinktank recently suggested that eliminating the backlog in cancer care alone could take more than a decade.

The government recently announced a 1 percentage point increase in national insurance contributions, with most of the revenue initially going to the NHS, and switching to social care in later years.

As well as dealing with the legacy of the coronavirus crisis, Javid said he wanted to tackle the inequalities that mean healthy life expectancy is 20 years higher in Richmond-upon-Thames than Blackpool, where he gave a recent speech.

“With Covid, we’ve all seen that it’s had a different effect on people depending on perhaps where they live, what their income was, what their race was in some cases. Lots of people have said Covid is a great leveller but it is nothing of the sort – it is anything but that.”

He gave the example of the pulse oximeters that were used to assess patients’ oxygen levels and determine whether they should receive treatment in hospital. “They were giving the wrong readings, generally, for anyone that had dark skin – because they were designed for caucasians,” he said.

“As a result, you were less likely to end up on oxygen if you were black or brown, because the reading was just wrong.”

Asked if that could partly explain higher death rates among minority ethnic people, he said: “I think it’s a reason,” though suggested that BAME people were also more likely to be in frontline jobs such as transport or health workers.

Javid, who is the son of a Pakistani bus driver, said his background gave him a new perspective. “As the first health secretary from an ethnic minority background I think I feel able to say things about racial disparities that others couldn’t say,” he said.

He said tackling these inequalities would mean a cross-government effort and that he was examining effective ways of tackling tobacco and alcohol use, and obesity. “I want to find out the best ways to do it,” he said.

He praised the sugar tax levied on sweetened drinks in 2018, saying it had encouraged manufacturers to reformulate their products – though said he was not considering specific new tax proposals. But asked whether he would consider tax as a way of tackling health disparities, he said, “Instinctively I don’t like it.”

Javid raised the question of whether companies target advertising for unhealthy products such as junk food at less affluent areas, where health outcomes tend to be poorer.

“Just picking Blackpool as an example, I wonder whether companies – tobacco companies, certain food companies – whether they target certain areas more themselves. I mean anecdotally, when I was in Blackpool, in the driving rain, going around, it just seems there’s a lot more adverts on stuff like alcohol everywhere than I notice in Bromsgrove, for example.”

Javid said that the health and social care bill currently before parliament includes limits on junk food advertising to children, but dropped a hint that he would like to go further. “I’m almost one step ahead of that,” he said.

But Javid’s claim to be ready to tackle health disparities came as the Health Foundation thinktank and the Association of Directors of Public Health (ADPH) pointed out in a new analysis that the public health grant had been cut by 24% in real terms per capita since 2015-16 – equivalent to £43 a head in Blackpool, for example.

Jim McManus, interim director of the ADPH, said: “Investing in local public health is critical to levelling up, preparing for the future threats and building a more prevention-focused health and care system.”

Javid praised the healthcare workers who have been on the frontline during the pandemic. He said: “When it comes to GPs, they’ve done a brilliant job and continue to work incredibly hard, and if we want them to meet more people, which I do, offer more face to face appointments, then I have got to work with them in partnership and see what we can do.

“I’ve asked both GP leaders and also my department to think about what more we can do.”

Javid suggested he was considering a new “covenant” for healthcare workers, along the lines of those the government has signed with the police and members of the military, setting out the government’s responsibilities to support them.

“I am just thinking about what more we can do in law to support health and social care workers,” he said.

Asked whether there could be more serious penalties for those who attack health workers, Javid said: “You could. One thing I did for police and emergency workers was to increase the penalties. I will think about what I can do.”

Health

Bayelsa records 98% immunisation coverage

Bayelsa has recorded a 98 per cent coverage in the first round of the 2025 National Immunisation Plus Days (NIPDs) programme conducted from the May 3 to May 6.

Mr Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, deputy governor of the state, disclosed this during a meeting of the state’s taskforce on immunisation in Yenagoa on Wednesday.

He said that the government’s ultimate target was to achieve 100 per cent coverage in subsequent immunisation campaigns.

Ewhrudjakpo lauded the WHO, UNICEF, the Ministry of Health and other critical stakeholders for the feat achieved so far.

He, however, urged the partners not to rest on their oars as much still have to be done to achieve its target of 100 per cent immunization coverage.

He underscored the need for early preparations ahead of the second round of 2025 NIPDs scheduled for July.

The deputy governor assured the partners that funds for the programme would be released not later than two weeks to its commencement.

He directed all council chairmen to flag-off the second round of the 2025 NIPDs programme at any community other than their respective local government headquarters.

The deputy governor urged the chairmen to meet with the traditional rulers, school proprietors, and religious leaders in their areas to sensitise them on the importance of immunisation.

He also called parents, schools and churches to allow children to participate in the immunisation programme.

”The state government is serious about enforcing its public health law and executive order on compulsory immunisation.

“We have taken our immunisation coverage up to 98 per cent. But we want to take it to 100 per cent this time around, and that is why we have convened this meeting.

“We are also going to make an upward review of the logistics to reflect the present economic realities in the country,” he said.

Presentations by Dr Marcus Oluwadare of the WHO, and Dr Gbanaibulou Orukari, Director of Disease Control, Bayelsa State Primary Healthcare Board, revealed that area councils scored high percentage in the coverage.

They, however, identified poor workload rationalisation, data falsification and lack of commitment on the part of some personnel.

According to Oluwadare, we commend the Deputy Governor of the state for flagging off the NIPDs and chairing all the state ERMs in spite of his tight schedule.

“Bayelsa State was the only state to have full complements of her stakeholders in attendance during the April NIPDs in the whole of Nigeria,” he said.

Health

NCDC records 832 Lassa fever, Mpox cases, 135 deaths

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has confirmed the country has recorded 832 confirmed cases of Lassa fever and Mpox.

Speaking during a press briefing on Friday in Abuja, the agency’s Director General, Dr. Jide Idris, revealed that 132 fatalities were recorded from Lassa fever and three from Mpox.

While acknowledging a recent decline in Lassa fever infections during epidemiological week 16 (ending April 20, 2025), he warned that the overall risk remains high, particularly in endemic regions.

“Cumulatively, as of week 16, Nigeria has reported 4,253 suspected cases of Lassa fever, 696 confirmed cases, and 132 deaths, resulting in a case fatality rate of 19.0 percent,” he stated.

Dr. Idris attributed recent improvements to intensified surveillance, treatment efforts, and enhanced community engagement. He emphasized, however, the continued need for vigilance and collaboration to sustain progress.

Regarding Mpox, the NCDC boss disclosed that three deaths have been recorded in 2025—two in Abia and Ebonyi States in week 10, and one recently in Rivers State involving a patient co-infected with HIV and tuberculosis. As of week 16, 723 suspected cases and 136 laboratory-confirmed cases of Mpox have been reported across 35 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The national case fatality rate currently stands at 2.2 per cent.

“The epidemic curve reveals multiple peaks in Mpox cases, indicating ongoing transmission. While most states have reported suspected cases, confirmed infections are heavily concentrated in Nigeria’s southern and central regions,” Dr. Idris noted.

To address these outbreaks, the NCDC has activated its Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), deployed National Rapid Response Teams to affected states, and prepositioned essential medical supplies, including personal protective equipment and laboratory consumables. Five additional Mpox diagnostic laboratories have also been optimized in Bauchi, Kano, Cross River, Rivers, and Enugu States.

“Healthcare workers are undergoing specialized training in infection prevention, case management, and cerebrospinal meningitis (CSM) care. Community outreach is being reinforced through public awareness campaigns, media engagement, and targeted health communication strategies,” he added.

On cerebrospinal meningitis, Dr. Idris reported a consistent decline in new cases and fatalities over the last three weeks.

He attributed the improvement to effective vaccination, early treatment, and adaptive surveillance strategies tailored to real-time data.

“Although the situation remains serious, strong national and state-level coordination is showing positive results. The response will continue until full containment is achieved and states take full ownership of the CSM Incident Action Plan,” he said.

Dr. Idris also expressed concern about the rising Mpox trend since its reemergence in 2017, with significant spikes recorded between 2022 and 2024, positioning Nigeria among the most affected countries globally. He warned that underreporting and delayed data entry remain challenges that need urgent resolution to ensure accurate and timely outbreak response.

A national mortality review for the recent Mpox deaths is being planned to further assess response effectiveness and identify areas for improvement.

The NCDC reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding public health through timely surveillance, transparent reporting, and coordinated national response mechanisms aimed at reducing disease burden and preventing future outbreaks.

Health

Only 89 doctors left in Kwara Govt hospitals amid ‘Japa’ crisis – Health Board

The Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Hospital Management Board, Abdulrahman Malik, disclosed that there is an acute shortage of medical doctors in the state-owned hospitals.

Speaking at the state interministerial press briefing for the first quarter of 2025 on Tuesday, April 29, Malik said that due to the ‘Japa’ syndrome, doctors do not want to take up appointments with the state government, even when the government is ready to recruit them.

He lamented that while between 180 and 200 doctors are required in the government service, only 89 of them are available in the service.

He said the number of available doctors only recently became 89 from 86 when three who had left the service returned after the government introduced a new and improved salary for the doctors’ services.

The hospital board’s boss said the government had been trying to attract doctors to the state service with improved salaries and facilities that could encourage them to stay, especially in the rural areas where many of them do not want to go.

He also disclosed that the government has introduced an intern nurses programme for the training of nurses who would replace many nurses who had left the service for abroad.

“The mass exodus of health professionals is severely affecting our capacity to provide adequate care,” the official said.

“Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has approved an upgrade in the salaries of our doctors to match federal pay in a bid to retain the few we have left.

“The revised salary structure has led to the return of three doctors who had previously resigned, bringing the total number on the state’s payroll to 89.

“However, the figure still falls short of the estimated 180 to 200 physicians needed to serve the state’s population effectively.

“Nigeria’s doctor-to-patient ratio is currently estimated at one doctor to over 5,000 patients, far below the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) recommended one doctor to 600 patients.”