Page 91 - GHES-2-3

Global Health Economics and
Sustainability
Attitude of health-care workers toward hospital patients

3.6. The role of social workers in addressing both and the role of social workers in ensuring adequate
attitude problems of healthcare workers and care for patients. A series of issues were uncovered by
community members/patients toward hospital care this study. First, the study revealed that the attitude
during the COVID-19 pandemic of healthcare workers toward hospital patients during
the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria was negative and
In an IDI session with medical social workers, it became suboptimal. Healthcare workers abandoned their patients
evident that medical social workers and other social due to fear of contracting COVID-19. Due to the poor and
workers in the public health domain played a major role negative attitude of healthcare workers toward hospital
in addressing the negative attitude of healthcare workers
toward patients during the COVID-19 pandemic and patients, a lot of patients passed away, and for some, their
lockdown. They also made efforts to address the apathy health conditions worsened. Studies and reviews have
underscored the devastating impact of healthcare workers’
toward hospital treatment displayed by community negative attitudes toward work and patients. According to
members during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in Obinna (2011), it is especially concerning when healthcare
Nigeria, which resulted in self-medication, unorthodox professionals in Nigeria’s public and private hospitals have
treatments, and a lot of unrelated COVID-19 deaths. a negative attitude toward their jobs and their patients.
Social workers during this period educated patient on The lives of patients, many of whom are already in critical
their rights to adequate medical treatment as enshrined in condition, have been put at further risk by years of bad
the Nigerian constitution and the medical code of ethics attitudes, especially in the public sector. Again, over 90%
that binds healthcare workers. The following are the quotes of deaths recounted in Nigerian hospitals were a result
captured from the medical social workers:
of the poor attitude of health-care workers toward work
“I had to encourage pregnant women to come for and the very patients they were assigned to take care of
their antenatal care because it will be to their own (Agan, 2020). A study by Inyang & Doubrapade (2016)
detriment if they avoid the hospital because of fear of also warned of the dangers of the unfounded, poor, and
COVID-19. We also facilitated the provision of PPE in negative attitudes of health-care workers toward patients.
the hospital” (IDI 5: medical social workers). Some factors informed the suboptimal and negative
“Social workers have to let patients and community attitude of health-care workers toward patients during
members know that they have certain rights. They do the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak and lockdown in
not know their rights. Instead of taking up the matter Nigeria. Those factors incapacitated and limited healthcare
in the hospital when despised by health-care workers, workers’ ability to help patients adequately during the
they give up on hospital treatment and resort to self- pandemic outbreaks. These factors include a lack of
medication. They should be made to understand, hospital equipment such as PPE, a lack of incentives,
first, their rights and, second, the dangers of self- hazard allowances, minimum wage allowances, and
medication and quack treatment. All this treatment unpaid salaries. Medical doctors went on strike twice in
they receive, you know, has an effect. You will discover 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria. These
that organ failure has reached a very alarming state. All strike actions were to notify the government and other
these people who said ‘they poisoned me,’ have been relevant stakeholders of how disgruntled and unhappy
taking self-medication for a long time. What do these healthcare workers are with the lack of incentives, hazard
drugs do? They go to your vital organs and damage allowances, and salaries that are unpaid in many state
them. Social workers also have responsibilities for hospitals. Studies have proven that challenges such as
engaging stakeholders. Stakeholders like community those mentioned above have, in the past, been a cog in the
leaders, local government authorities, and the health wheel and a discouraging factor for health-care workers
communities will now come together to rectify those in discharging their duties of saving lives. For example,
problems that are limiting people’s access to adequate Osain (2011) came to the conclusion that the Nigerian
hospital care. Social workers also make sure that all the health care system is underdeveloped, citing a lack of
health benefits that are supposed to go to the people modern technology and surveillance systems after looking
get to the people.” (IDI 7: medical social worker). at the country’s medical care system and the necessity of
4. Discussion integrating effective medical surveillance and intelligence
systems. More recent studies proved that not much has
This study investigated the attitude of health-care workers changed with time. For example, a study by Uchendu et al.
toward hospital patients during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020) interrogated barriers and facilitators of Nigerian
in Nigeria, the attitude of community members/patients nurses’ engagement in health-promoting behavior. The
toward hospital care during the COVID-19 pandemic, study revealed that Nigerian health workers, such as

Volume 2 Issue 3 (2024) 8 https://doi.org/10.36922/ghes.2743