Lagos State Government has partnered with Interswitch e’CLAT to launch an innovative health insurance initiative, Smart Health Information Platform (SHIP), aimed at enhancing healthcare access for its residents.
The Lagos State Ministry of Health hosted the pre-launch event themed “Shape Health Outcomes in Lagos Today and Tomorrow” at the Lagos Oriental Hotel Today.
While the initiative will leverage digital payment platforms to simplify the enrollment process, which starts from the public sector, and improve the efficiency of premium payments, the partnership will help in achieving universal health coverage in one of Nigeria’s most populous states. It will further ensure that more Lagosians can benefit from affordable health services.
The healthcare sector in Lagos has been known to be unreliable with challenges. According to recent statistics, only about 3% of Lagos residents are currently enrolled in any form of health insurance, leaving millions vulnerable to the financial shocks associated with out-of-pocket medical expenses.
The high cost of healthcare, inadequate infrastructure, and a huge shortage of healthcare professionals further worsen the problem. These issues have led to poor health outcomes, with preventable diseases such as malaria and maternal mortality remaining alarmingly high.
SHIP aims to tackle these issues by providing affordable and accessible healthcare options to the state’s underserved populations.
In his keynote address, Prof. Emmanuel Akinola Abayomi, commissioner for Health, Lagos State Ministry of Health, emphasised the transformative potential of data-driven healthcare solutions, stating that the Lagos SHIP initiative will create enhanced experiences for all healthcare stakeholders and enable residents to access quality healthcare services.
Prof. Abayomi explained, “Today is a very important day in the landscape of Lagos State’s Ministry of Health. We’ve been given the commission by His Excellency, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Lagos State, to proceed with the digitalisation of the health sector in the state, known as the Smart Health Information Platform, popularly known as SHIP,” he stated.
He said the SHIP project has been in development for several years, involving a detailed procurement process that led to the selection of Interswitch e’CLAT as the preferred partner.
Dr. Wallace Ogufere, managing director of e’CLAT, appreciated the Lagos State government for selecting Interswitch as a partner in developing SHIP. He stated, “We will bring all the opportunities and experience in the financial sector to make sure this is successful. We have that experience in financial dealings and we hope to replicate that in health.
“By leveraging advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning, virtual care, wearables, data analytics, and the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), Lagos SHIP will redefine the way healthcare is delivered, accessed, and experienced,” Dr. Ogufere added.
SHIP aims to interconnect all general hospitals, primary healthcare facilities, and other public health institutions in Lagos, enabling seamless data collection and exchange across the healthcare system.
Prof. Abayomi noted, “The idea around this is to create a platform of information exchange, where data is gathered at the patient entry phase. As the patient enters into the health ecosystem, at that very point of entry, we already start to collect data, and as the patient moves through the process of the health managed care, we are gathering data at every point. That information will now be gathered into one location inside the SHIP.”
On data security, Prof. Abayomi said the Ministry of Health, alongside the Ministry of Innovation Science and Technology have been working on data security for years now, “happy to say that Lagos, State Ministry of Health and its partner agencies have been approved and accredited as compliant and able to protect the integrity and the security of our residents and our patients personal health information so that it is not accessible in an abnormal way.”
Prof. Abayomi further said the platform was carefully developed to ensure data security, resource allocation, policy formulation, and patient care. He mentioned, “We’re paying particular attention to the flexibility and the movement of information, speed of information, and as this is a public-private partnership, we are opening the floor and the opportunity to Lagosians and anybody really, to partner with the state or to partner with our concessionaires, to identify areas in which they want to contribute to the expansion the evolution and the development of the ship.
“The SHIP is not a static thing, it will evolve as technology evolves, it will evolve as facilities come on board, and eventually, we’re going to roll it out into the private sector, so that the government has a complete picture of the health seeking behaviour of all its citizens, residents in Lagos or those visiting to access medical tourism.”
Dr. Wallace Ogufere pointed to the importance of seamless information flow in improving patient outcomes, adding, “This will then translate into better outcomes for patient care, and hopefully Lagos State will stand as a beacon of good healthcare in Nigeria and Africa as a whole.”
The Lagos SHIP Engagement Forum was organised to raise awareness for SHIP and its benefits, educate stakeholders on its functionalities, secure stakeholders’ and support for SHIP adoption, and address concerns related to data security and privacy in the Lagos healthcare ecosystem.
Olufemi Olapegba, managing director of Digital Health Platforms Limited, provided insights into the technological framework behind SHIP. He noted the adoption of global standards for health data exchange, stating, “SHIP will comply with various regulations and standards, we’ve adopted FHIR [Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources] as the de facto standard for exchanging health data.”
He outlined several Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) that SHIP will expose, including the Patient Demography Service, Summary Care Records API, and E-Prescription Service, which are designed to enhance patient care and operational efficiency within the healthcare system.
Dr. (Mrs.) Kemi Ogunyemi, special adviser to the Lagos State Ministry of Health, reflected on the patient-centric focus of SHIP. She stated, “SHIP is going to allow us to be more patient-focused. It gives us that extra step to patient focus. SHIP allows the patient to get more information, make informed decisions, and be in control of what is going on.”
Dr. Olusegun Ogboye, permanent secretary of the Lagos State Ministry of Health, highlighted the role of SHIP in improving healthcare management and decision-making. He explained, “As health managers, we at the top of the health chain in the ministry can see all the data analytics and it helps us to make informed decisions that will greatly impact in the right way.”
The SHIP platform is a commendable initiative in healthcare delivery across Lagos State, tackling the issues of unreliability in the current healthcare sector.
