South-East’s Tertiary Healthcare System Nears Breaking Point As Infrastructure Crisis Deepens

South-East’s Tertiary Healthcare System Nears Breaking Point as Infrastructure Crisis Deepens Nigeria’s South-East is facing a worsening tertiary healthcare crisis, with teaching hospitals increasingly overwhelmed by the collapse of primary and secondary healthcare services, deteriorating infrastructure, chronic underfunding, and a shortage of medical personnel. The situation is stretching the region’s referral hospitals beyond capacity and undermining access to quality healthcare. According to many patients bypass poorly equipped primary healthcare centres and general hospitals, seeking treatment directly at tertiary institutions. This has left teaching hospitals struggling with overcrowding, long waiting times, obsolete medical equipment, and inadequate bed space, while facilities meant to handle basic and intermediate care continue to deteriorate. Health experts warn that years of systemic neglect, insufficient government investment, and the migration of healthcare professionals have compounded the crisis. The region’s teaching hospitals now face mounting pressure to provide specialised services while simultaneously performing functions intended for lower levels of care, reducing efficiency and compromising patient outcomes. Stakeholders argue that reversing the decline will require comprehensive investment across the entire healthcare value chain, beginning with revitalising primary healthcare centres and strengthening secondary hospitals to reduce the burden on tertiary institutions. They also call for improved funding, modern medical infrastructure, workforce retention policies, and better coordination between federal, state, and local health authorities. Analysts warn that unless urgent reforms are implemented, the South-East’s tertiary healthcare system risks further deterioration, threatening healthcare delivery for millions of residents who depend on the region’s teaching hospitals for specialised medical care.