ABSTRACT
Nigeria is Africa's most populous country with a population of about 180 million persons. Despite its chequered economic and political history, it remains a regional powerhouse with much influence in the African continent. Its significant population is one of the key reasons why effective patient safety policy, practice and infrastructures are essential. Issues of quality have often been raised, yet they remain at a nascent stage in regard to both policy and practice. The protection of patients from iatrogenic harms is a matter that deserves much more attention than it is currently getting in Nigeria. Although there was a spike of attention to patient safety concerns, particularly with regard to sanitation and hygiene in health facilities and infection control in the aftermath of the Ebola epidemic's brief appearance in Nigeria in 2014, there has not been sustained attention to patient safety. Issues such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and maternal mortality have received some political commitment and resources.
