The Federal Government has unveiled plans to establish eight state-of-the-art medical simulation centers across Nigeria to revolutionize medical education and training in the country.
Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, inaugurated a 19-member Implementation and Monitoring Committee on Wednesday to oversee this initiative. The committee will be chaired by renowned neurosurgeon Prof. Wale Sulaiman.
According to the Minister, the simulation centers will provide realistic and immersive learning environments for medical students and healthcare professionals, allowing them to practice clinical skills in controlled settings without risk to patients.
"Our findings revealed that medical simulation centers are virtually non-existent in Nigerian medical institutions, and modern training tools such as virtual patients and telemedicine platforms remain underutilized," Alausa stated during the inauguration.
Committee's Mandate
The committee has been tasked with finalizing the proposal for the centers, creating a clear roadmap for their establishment, ensuring compliance with goals and objectives, and developing quality assurance measures and standard operating procedures.
Other responsibilities include overseeing implementation across the country, providing project management oversight, and developing detailed key performance indicators for the simulation centers and institutions.
"We're starting with eight simulation centers, which is quite good," the Minister noted, adding that committee members have been appointed for an initial three-year term, with the possibility of extension for another three years.
Financial Sustainability
Alausa emphasized the importance of ensuring the centers' financial sustainability through social mobility models and proper alignment between medical schools and teaching hospitals.
"Once it's fully done, how it becomes financially sustainable is a big thing. You need to work on the alignment between the medical schools and the teaching hospitals because they are going to play for a fight," he advised the committee.
The Minister also revealed plans for additional funding next year to expand the initiative to more medical schools and teaching hospitals across the country.
Transforming Medical Education
Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Arc. Sonny Echono, described medical simulation as "a cornerstone of modern medical education" widely adopted in developed countries.
"Our universities will greatly benefit from these interventions; they can use the simulation centers not only for training but also as hubs for innovation, developing and testing new medical devices, protocols, and training models," Echono explained.
Prof. Wale Sulaiman, Chairman of the committee, assured that they would work diligently to ensure successful implementation, emphasizing the importance of collaboration and stakeholder engagement in achieving the committee's objectives.
The establishment of these simulation centers represents a significant step toward achieving the Federal Government's vision of making Nigeria a hub of medical excellence, with the potential to improve patient safety, reduce medical errors, and increase the number of skilled healthcare professionals in the country.
