Nigeria's rehabilitation sector is struggling. Fewer than 10,000 qualified professionals serve over 200 million people.
This severe shortage is denying patients access to specialized care. Many living with disabilities and chronic conditions face worsening health outcomes.
The Medical Rehabilitation Therapists Board of Nigeria is now demanding action. They want dedicated government funding, expanded insurance coverage for physiotherapy equipment, and faster investment in training more professionals.
Yusuf Rufai, registrar of the board, made the disclosure in Abuja this week. He spoke during a collaborative training programme with Built to Last, a medical technology firm.
The partnership aims to expose Nigerian physiotherapists to new rehabilitation technologies. It also seeks to strengthen how the board ensures standards are maintained.
According to Rufai, modern equipment alone isn't enough to fix the sector. "BTL provides the technologies used in physiotherapy practice," he said.
"Our job is to regulate professional standards and ensure these technologies integrate properly into our framework."
He noted the board has shifted its approach away from pure enforcement. Instead, officials now engage directly with healthcare workers on compliance requirements.
"Many violations come from misunderstanding, not from willful breaches," Rufai told reporters. "We educate stakeholders so they grasp why policies matter."
Two critical problems plague the sector, he identified. Some facilities lack equipment entirely, while others have it but staff can't use it properly.
Training gaps are widespread across the profession. Practitioners need additional skills to maximise modern technology benefits for patients.
Rufai emphasized that rehabilitation requires more than pushing buttons on machines. Clinical judgment matters just as much as technical knowledge.
"Having equipment is meaningless without knowing when to use it," he stressed. "Wrong treatment approaches can actually harm patient recovery."
Addressing these challenges requires urgent action from multiple directions. Government must invest more money in rehabilitation infrastructure and equipment.
Insurance companies should expand coverage for physiotherapy technologies. Schools must train far more rehabilitation professionals than they do currently.
Rufai said the board will continue training physiotherapists while pushing for higher government spending. His advocacy ties directly to the World Health Organisation's Rehabilitation 2030 Initiative.
That global programme aims to strengthen rehabilitation services in all countries. It focuses on neglected areas like governance, financing, and workforce development.
The Federal Ministry of Health should prioritize rehabilitation in national health spending. Without urgent change, the gap between patient needs and available services will only widen.
