In the Western region of Nigeria, there’s Mohammed, a Northerner who bravely navigated a language barrier to provide the best professional service as a registered nurse to every patient in the general hospital he was posted to despite only speaking Hausa and English.
He did not let the language barrier deter him from providing quality care to every patient he cared for or interacted with. They all left his presence smiling and feeling loved and respected.
During his National Youth Service Program, a mandatory service for all Nigerian graduates, Mohammed was stationed in one of the most famous general hospitals for his primary assignment, one known for its excellence in patient care and medical services.
While there, Mohammed never failed to notice how patients would take extra walks far across the street from the hospital to a smaller centre, hidden from plain sight, rather than go to the ART unit within the hospital.
The ART unit oversees all activities involving HIV/AIDS prevention, management, and general counselling.
“It is just three blocks away!” he would tell his colleagues in surprise whenever he saw a patient taking that long extra walk.
As absurd as it seemed, they had their reason.
It was simple.
The town was known for taking exceptional note of those visiting the hospital’s ART unit.
Since it was a small town, everyone knew themselves.
So whenever they saw a face they knew walking through those doors, they started spreading false tales regarding the health condition of such persons.
Tales are terrible enough to breed a stigma that lasts a lifetime, making most patients who live in the community fear going to the hospital for treatment and counselling.
Tragically, such scenarios are not isolated. Across Africa, stigma remains a formidable yet often unseen barrier to healthcare access.
Living in a world plagued with labels, judgment, and shaming can be exhausting and disheartening for anyone living with certain types of healthcare challenges.
The Burden Of Stigma
Stigma refers to the negative judgments people make about others based on particular traits, qualities or healthcare conditions.
Having our attributes, complexities, and health challenges reduced to a single label can be deeply distressing.
How we talk about individuals and their health conditions plays a crucial role in shaping societal stigma.
For instance, using expressions like “sufferer” or “victim” can perpetuate harmful stereotypes and cause psychological harm to those affected.
Such stigmatising language only serves to reinforce negative perceptions. It inflicts further damage on those who are already marginalised by stigma.
Breaking Barriers Through Education
Across many African communities, healthcare decisions are deeply connected with cultural beliefs and traditional practices. Research conducted across sub-Saharan Africa shows that stigma often stems from firmly established cultural misinterpretations and fears (Atujuna et al., 2023).
In Nigeria, a study of 450 community members showed that 67% of healthcare avoidance was directly linked to cultural stigma and community perceptions.
A groundbreaking program in Kenya, the Anti-Stigma Initiative, revealed that when healthcare workers underwent extensive anti-stigma training, patient attendance increased by 43% within six months (Kimani et al., 2024).
The program, led by Dr James Mwangi, focused on acknowledging and addressing biases among healthcare workers, creating a welcoming environment for patients, and promoting person-centred language.
To counteract these outcomes, health professionals must avoid using terms with negative meanings when discussing patient illness. Healthcare professionals need to focus on person-centred language to start using non-stigmatising language.
This type of language, often called “person-centred language”, reflects that an individual’s health condition is only one part of their life, not a defining characteristic.
It emphasises the person first, rather than their illness, and is respectful and empowering.
This ensures that the language used is respectful and empowering and promotes an all-inclusive mindset that ensures everyone is aware of how important it is to discuss people and their health conditions.
In the same light, traditional, religious, and community health workers play an important role in facilitating a positive culture of support in their communities.
Their significant influence goes a long way in challenging negative attitudes, beliefs, and stereotypes and promoting understanding and acceptance of people regardless of whatever illness they might suffer from.
By doing this, they will directly or indirectly establish a welcoming atmosphere that benefits every community member.
Conclusion
The battle against health-related stigma in Africa involves more than statistics and strategies; it’s about preserving human dignity, saving lives, and creating a new narrative of acceptance in our communities.
Each time a patient walks through those doors without fear, whenever a family supports their loved one’s health journey, and every time a community embraces rather than excludes and shuns a member of theirs due to their health condition, we move one step closer to the healthcare system our people deserve.
As we journey through this transformative journey, let us remember that behind every policy, training program, and initiative are real people like you and me with real stories.
The success of every healthcare system is not merely measured by increased patient numbers or improved health outcomes but, most importantly, by the tears of relief from patients who finally feel seen, understood, and accepted.
In the fight against healthcare stigma, let’s heed the wisdom of an African adage: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
Let’s choose to go far together.
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