Source: APO – Report:
The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening clinical governance and patient safety systems across Nigeria’s health institutions, with a renewed focus on ensuring safe, coordinated and quality care for people living with noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, CON, stated this at the commemoration of World Patient Safety Day 2026, held on Thursday, 17 September 2026, at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Abuja.
The 2026 observance, themed “Safe Care for Noncommunicable Diseases”, with the slogan “Safe care for life!”, highlights the need to protect patients from avoidable harm throughout their healthcare journey.
Professor Pate noted that NCDs, including cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases, constitute a major health burden and often require prolonged interaction with the health system. He explained that the extended nature of NCD care creates multiple points at which safety risks may occur, including prevention, diagnosis, treatment, referral, follow-up and long-term management.
According to him, patient safety remains fundamental to the quality and effectiveness of healthcare delivery, requiring that the right care is provided to the right patient, at the right time and in the right manner, while minimizing avoidable harm.
The Coordinating Minister recalled that the Ministry developed the National Patient Safety and Care Quality Policy and Implementation Strategy in 2024, while in January 2026, it further strengthened the national patient safety architecture through the establishment and inauguration of the National Task Force on Clinical Governance and Patient Safety.
He disclosed that the Ministry, through the National Task Force, is currently developing a National Framework on Clinical Governance and Patient Safety, designed to provide coherent national direction for strengthening governance, accountability, quality improvement, patient safety practices, learning systems, monitoring and reporting across health institutions.
Professor Pate emphasized that safer healthcare requires more than the individual commitment of health professionals, stressing the importance of strong leadership and governance structures, clear standards, competent and supported health workers, reliable data, functional incident-reporting and learning systems, quality improvement mechanisms, and meaningful engagement of patients and their families.
He further called for the promotion of a “Just Culture” within health institutions, where healthcare professionals can report incidents, near misses and safety concerns without fear of inappropriate punishment. He noted that functional clinical governance structures, evidence-based clinical standards, quality improvement processes and regular performance reviews are essential to building a culture of safety and continuous learning.
The Minister stressed that the 2026 focus on NCDs reinforces the urgency of strengthening these systems, noting that unsafe diagnosis, medication errors, poor communication, inadequate follow-up and fragmented care can cause significant harm, particularly to patients requiring long-term care.
He therefore underscored the importance of continuity and coordination of care, competent and supported health workers, strong health systems and the active involvement of patients in decisions concerning their health.
Professor Pate also emphasized the central role of patient and family engagement, stating that patients should be treated with dignity and respect, adequately informed about their conditions and treatment options, and encouraged to participate meaningfully in decisions regarding their care.
The Coordinating Minister urged stakeholders to treat patient safety not as an annual observance but as a continuous commitment to improving the quality of healthcare delivery in Nigeria.
“Let us move from commitment to action; from reporting to learning; and from learning to sustained improvement,” he said.
He reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to ensuring that every Nigerian receives healthcare that is safe, effective, timely, equitable and respectful, emphasizing that the ultimate goal is to prevent avoidable harm to patients seeking or receiving healthcare.
Professor Pate appreciated stakeholders and partners for their continued commitment to advancing clinical governance, quality of care and patient safety in Nigeria, and called for sustained collaboration towards building a safer and more responsive health system.
In her welcome address, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Daju Kachollom S. mni, noted that patient safety must be embedded in every stage of care through appropriate standards and protocols, reliable health information, effective referral systems and continuous improvement.
According to her, patient safety is central to the Ministry’s mandate to save lives, reduce physical and financial pain, and produce health for all Nigerians, noting that a strong health system must not only expand access but also provide care that Nigerians can trust to be safe, effective and people-centred.
She said this year’s theme, “Safe Care for Noncommunicable Diseases,” with the slogan “Safe Care for Life,” underscores the need to protect patients from avoidable harm throughout the continuum of care.
The Permanent Secretary called on health workers, managers, healthcare institutions, partners, patients and the media to make patient safety a daily responsibility rather than a one-day observance. She emphasised that the measure of a health system is not only how many people it reaches, but how safely it cares for every person it reaches.
Delivering the goodwill message on behalf of the WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Mohamed Janabi, the WHO Country Representative, Parvel Ursu, stressed the need to strengthen primary health care, improve continuity and coordination of services, promote safe use of medicines and technologies, and establish systems where health workers can report errors and learn from them without fear of blame.
He also urged patients and families to actively participate in their care by asking questions, communicating concerns and contributing to safer health services.
Ursu further noted that WHO remains committed to supporting Nigeria in strengthening the quality and safety of NCD services, while ensuring that the experiences of patients and families inform the design and delivery of healthcare.
He commended the Ministry for prioritising patient safety and reaffirmed WHO’s commitment to supporting the implementation of relevant strategies to reduce avoidable harm and build greater public trust in the health system.
– on behalf of Federal Ministry of Health & Social Welfare, Nigeria.
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