𝑾𝒉𝒚 “𝑳𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑩𝒂𝒄𝒌” 𝑺𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝑴𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔

In my discourse yesterday

👉🏾 https://www.askchuka.com/2026/03/blog-post.html 

I reflected on why the growing idea of “𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙬𝙚 𝙙𝙤 𝙞𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙬” can be problematic.

I also promised to explain why, especially in a world that constantly tells us to 𝗠𝗢𝗩𝗘 𝗢𝗡, while wisdom quietly reminds us to 𝗟𝗢𝗢𝗞 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗞.

Let me tell you a short story.

One day, my son began bleeding profusely from his nose, and we rushed him to a hospital in Abuja (𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙄 𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡’𝙨 𝙈𝘿).

In the past, I had some minor concerns about a few of their diagnoses, although my wife preferred the hospital, perhaps because of the environment.

So this time, I armed myself with a medical application on my phone to validate some of the diagnoses the doctors might give.

Unfortunately, my concerns proved valid.

A young doctor suggested that the bleeding might be related to a Vitamin K deficiency and proposed prescriptions along that line. Sensing that something was not quite right, I began asking more questions.

My probing clearly made her uncomfortable.

At some point, I even noticed the doctor browsing the internet, trying to support the diagnosis she had already proposed.

At that point, I asked my wife if we could take our son to Angelic Care Hospital (𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙩) to see Dr Shetimma, a consultant paediatrician.

For those who know him, it sometimes takes a long wait to see Dr Shetimma.

But the wait is usually worth it.

In less than fifteen minutes, and with treatment that cost less than ₦𝟳,𝟬𝟬𝟬, he resolved the issue.

That moment reminded me of something very important.

𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀.

And experience often comes from patience, mentorship, and the willingness to learn over time rather than rushing through the process.

The young doctor we met, and many others like her, will one day be responsible for caring for us when we become old and frail.

Yet Nigeria’s healthcare system is already struggling for many reasons, poor government policies, weak health systems, the migration of medical professionals, and the enormous pressures young doctors face.

If we do not pay serious attention to the kind of mentorship and professional development our young medical personnel receive, how can we expect them to care adequately for us in the future?

The stories of young Nigerians dying due to medical negligence are increasingly troubling. In many cases, it is not always because doctors are careless, but because the environment is so difficult that survival becomes the priority rather than professional growth.

And the healthcare sector is only one example.

This same challenge exists across many areas of our national life, religion, education, marriage, leadership, security and more.

So the question becomes:

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗼 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁?

If you stay with me, I will share a few suggestions in the next post.

Shalom.

Chuka Chiezie 1 of Africa. 😉