Taiwo Jimoh 
A none non-governmental organisation, the West African Society of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (WASPEN) has said that inadequate nutritional support increased complications for patients and prolonged hospital stays in Nigeria.
WASPEN noted that many patients in Nigerian hospitals suffer from inadequate nutritional support, resulting in prolonged hospital stays and spending for family members of such a person.
WASPEN President, Dr. Teresa Pounds, made these known while addressing an online press conference to herald the 2025 WASPEN Clinical Nutrition Conference on Monday.
“With a Theme: Bridging the gap: ‘Integrating hospital and Community Malnutrition Care in developing countries.’
Pounds, while speaking at the press conference in collaboration with the National Hospital Abuja, said that poor nutritional support is leading to increased complications and higher mortality rates.
She explained that the issue must be addressed urgently.
She used the opportunity to call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to make clinical malnutrition a national healthcare priority in Nigerian hospitals.
Pounds, further, maintained that the present government should implement a national policy framework to support specialized clinical nutrition interventions.
She called on the federal and state ministries of health to expand and enforce standardized clinical nutrition policies.
She admonished them to ensure that hospitals conduct structured nutrition screening for all patients and make medical nutrition therapy accessible and affordable.
Pounds, who described malnutrition as “the skeleton in the hospital’s closet,” emphasized the need for urgent awareness, policy reform, and collaboration among healthcare stakeholders to ensure effective hospital nutrition programs.
She said: “Many patients in Nigerian hospitals suffer from inadequate nutritional support, leading to prolonged hospital stays, increased complications, and higher mortality rates. This issue must be addressed at the highest level.
“We need a national framework that ensures no patient suffers due to a lack of proper nutrition.”
However, in her remarks the Local Organising Chairman, Pharm. Adesola Clara, representing Chief Medical Director National Hospital Abuja, Prof.
Muhammad Raji Mahmud said that the significance of the partnership with WASPEN was underscored. “This collaboration is both an honour and a necessity.”
She also acknowledged the alarming statistics from UNICEF that approximately 2 million children in Nigeria are affected by malnutrition. “This is an urgent issue that must be addressed for the betterment of our society and the advancement of our economic growth,” she said.
Earlier, Pharm. Blessing Ghinsel, the Chairperson of the WASPEN Central Planning Committee, also outlined the exciting plans leading up to the conference, including a hands-on training workshop on nutritional kits scheduled for June 16, a Health Awareness Walk on June 17 led by First Lady Oluremi Tinubu, and a pivotal panel discussion on June 19 that will encapsulate the conference’s findings.
