Abuja: The Medical Director of Kasi Healthcare, Dr. Dayo Osholowu, has emphasized the urgent need for Nigeria to operate dedicated, purpose-built domestic ambulance helicopters to improve air medical emergency response. According to News Agency of Nigeria, Osholowu highlighted that the absence of such aircraft in Nigeria is a significant oversight, as air medical transport is essential survival infrastructure and not a luxury for the privileged.
Osholowu pointed out that as Nigeria approaches the status of one of the world’s most populous nations, the reliance on hospital beds and road medical emergency responses alone is increasingly unsustainable. The medical expert stressed the necessity for Nigeria to have a ‘ready to launch at a moment’s notice’ system for emergency care across its vast 924,000 square kilometers. Response times for air medical evacuations in remote areas and offshore rigs often range from one hour to 48 hours, a stark contrast to the global benchmark of 10 to 15 minutes.
He explained that critical evacuation requests from Nigeria frequently require aircraft from Nairobi, Casablanca, or Cape Verde. The process of securing cross-border flight clearances, assembling crews, and uploading fuel can lead to delays of four to six hours under optimal conditions, with bureaucratic hurdles often extending the wait to two days. Such delays, Osholowu noted, are not just inconvenient but tragic in emergency medicine, where time is of the essence.
Historically, air medical operations in Nigeria have been secondary, pre-scheduled inter-facility transfers rather than primary life-saving efforts. Osholowu attributed the delays in these operations to systemic issues such as slow aviation clearances, rigid slot allocations, and limited operational hours at regional airfields. Additionally, the lack of certified hospital helipads forces aircraft to land at commercial airports, necessitating a second ground ambulance transfer and wasting critical time.
Osholowu mentioned that Lagos State Emergency Medical Services (LASAMBUS) operates over 30 decentralized ambulance points linked to a 112 dispatch network and trauma centers. This state-level model is being integrated into a national blueprint by the Federal Ministry of Health’s Sector-Wide Approach Office and the National Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System. Efforts are underway to build an Integrated National Ground-to-Air System by connecting ground operators like LASAMBUS with regional Helicopter Emergency Medical Services fleets and ensuring 48-hour emergency funding through the Basic Health Care Provision Fund.
Discussing the cost of air ambulances, Osholowu acknowledged that it is substantial, with expenses related to mobilisation fees, specialized intensive care unit equipment, aviation fuel, and overseas maintenance driving costs into thousands of dollars per hour. With out-of-pocket spending prevalent in Nigeria’s healthcare system and low insurance penetration, air ambulances have historically been accessible only to major energy corporations and wealthy individuals.
Osholowu expressed optimism, stating that just as Nigeria leapfrogged telecommunication landlines by adopting GSM, an integrated aeromedical network could allow the country to overcome physical infrastructure deficits. He emphasized that aeromedical capability is a sovereign mobile infrastructure that should be established before tragedy strikes.
NAN recalls that Kasi Healthcare and Airbus Helicopters recently signed an agreement for the procurement of up to two Airbus H135 helicopters for emergency medical services, with delivery expected in 2028. Kasi Healthcare is a pioneering Nigerian medical services and aeromedical organization based in Lagos.