The proposed legislation, sponsored by Senator Abdulaziz Yar’Adua, seeks to ensure timely emergency care, proper training of healthcare workers and improved patient referral procedures across the country.
Under the bill, public and private hospitals would be required to assess emergency patients within 15 minutes of arrival and commence initial stabilisation within 30 minutes.
It also proposes mandatory immediate medical interventions, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), airway management and bleeding control, once a life-threatening condition is identified.
The bill further stipulates that hospitals should provide admission beds within two hours, subject to availability.
Where beds are unavailable, healthcare facilities would be required to stabilise patients and commence referral arrangements within two hours or once they are considered medically fit for transfer. Ambulance dispatch or alternative transportation would also be expected to begin within 30 minutes.
Additionally, the proposed legislation seeks to mandate the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria and the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria to establish a national emergency care curriculum.
Healthcare workers would also be required to undergo training and certification at least once every 18 months.
The proposed law is aimed at addressing the persistent practice of hospitals rejecting emergency patients over their inability to pay medical bills upfront or failure to present police reports, a situation that has reportedly contributed to several avoidable deaths across the country.
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