If I get to talk to the president, I will ask him about his plans for the elderly —Ifeoma Orifa

Ifeoma Orifa, a ‘nursepreneur’, is the medical director of Accent Care Home, an assisted living facility for the elderly and all who need care in Lagos. In this interview with YEJIDE GBENGA-OGUNDARE, she speaks on her 13 years’ experience as a nurse, passion for the elderly and why Nigeria is ready for assisted living facilities and care homes like hers and the place of government in the care sector, among issues.

How did you think of an assisted living facility for the elderly?

What inspired me is not local. The more you travel, the more you learn, so, when I travel abroad, I look out for things that I could bring home. Fortunately, I saw that this gap is there and I wanted to fill it for my people. When I was a young girl, my grandfather was ill and he was living alone. He was 84 when he finally died, and so before his death, I would be sent by my mom to stay with him. I realised then that there are things that happen to elderly people that do not necessarily happen to young people. I developed the passion from there. It’s not like I don’t care for others, but I get so interested in taking care of anybody who is advanced in age, and I do whatever I can do to help them.

I’ve worked at different levels of nursing, but one of my greatest passions is being someone who takes care of the elderly and I do that passionately. Over the years, I have visited more than seven countries, and what I’ve noticed is a major difference between what happens to the elderly people there and what happens to the elderly people here. This fuelled my interest in establishing Accent Care Home.

How did you this in Nigeria?

Accent Care started in 2019. We started with what we call domiciliary care where we train caregivers and send them to the homes of people who need our services. We did not have a place where we could bring them, so we take these caregivers to people’s homes. We also have registered nurses that we send, depending on the level of care people need. As time went on, we decided to add some services to what we offer to serve people better. Now, we have a five-star facility to bring people in and care for them.

How did you domesticate that idea here, considering the belief that children should take care of their parents?

As I said earlier, I do not think locally, I think globally. Nevertheless, when I travel, I see. What I see are simply beautiful places where our elderly ones stay. I visited an elderly home in the United States and I was impressed. It didn’t smell like a hospital, neither was it giving an awkward feeling. It was just a beautiful home where people that are not necessarily sick but need assisted living stay. From there, I decided that what I would do would be even better than what they do there. I’m not exaggerating, what we have here is better than what many of the homes abroad look like.

What was the reception or acceptance level like? Are Nigerians truly ready for something like this?

In all sincerity, when I got into the business, I realised that Nigerians were ready for this. The only thing they didn’t have was opportunity and information. In terms of opportunity, they didn’t have people who were offering the service also, and they didn’t know where to access it but they were ready. A lot of people have elderly parents and they are busy with work. So, what do you do with your parents? They have to stay with you. Unfortunately, you don’t give them maximum time because you’re busy making money to survive with your family and also to take care of them. Eventually, you will no longer be able to handle it. So our parents end up suffering for nothing. When I got into the business, I was amazed by the reception. Now, I can tell you that a lot of people want it, even though they might not be able to afford it. Nigeria is ready for this.

How secure is your facility?

Everywhere we have a facility; we make sure that it is in a secure environment. You cannot gain access to the property without authorisation. There’s an electric gate before you come in and also an electric fence. It is in a secure, serene estate too.

Where is the place of government in the care sector?

The government would always have a huge part to play in any sector, but I think a government-private partnership would always be a good idea. In developed countries, when you get into a train or bus, you see a place marked off for the elderly and nobody stays there except those it was intended for. The government enforces it. They also make it available even in parking lots. Once you’re 65, you fall in the protected category, and it is the same for physically challenged people. Such provisions are not things private individuals can make; it’s only our government that can make that happen.

We need government’s support because what we can do is limited. For instance, if the fee for care homes can be subsidised, everyone would have access to it.

If you had a chance to ask the governor or president a question, what would it be?

I would ask him what the plans for the elderly are. I have had to care for a former model who is now 89. I have also at some point taken care of former head of parastatals and even a retired footballer who once played for the national team. These people were once agile, but as we get older, every one of us gets to that point where we need care.

How do you get your residents?

People get to us, especially through personal referrals. Once we take care of someone, they also tell others. Also, we have some hospitals partnering with us. Reputable hospitals like Duchess, Lagoon and a few others. We also refer our clients to them as needed.

Does health insurance cover your level of care?

Health insurance in Nigeria is not well developed. For a situation like this, when someone needs this care, we can offer the option to them. What happens most times is that people do not know this option exists. So, because they don’t know, there’s nothing much to do than to tell the HMO to let us in there and let their client have an option of care through us.

How capital intensive is it setting this up and how affordable is it for the average Nigerian?

This business is not something you do without proper funding. No matter how amazing the idea is there must be proper funding in place. We created a great business plan and started with domiciliary care when we knew that we couldn’t get an office. We then graduated from what we looked like before to what we are now. It was well orchestrated. All you need is a will, a purpose, and then you take action. This has been our watchword. I call myself a ‘Nurseprenuer’. Growing revenue took a while but yes, I’m a very passionate and efficient person. Of course, Accent Care Home would also not be possible without mentioning Engr. Samuel Orifa, my husband. He was there for me, and he has been supportive in every regard. As for the amount that’s charged, I can tell you it ranges, but it is very affordable. It is cheaper than being in a hotel, and our services are exceptional.

What services do you offer?

We offer domiciliary services and take care of individuals in their own homes. We have trained caregivers, nurses, and doctors that can go to these homes and deliver care. Secondly, in our facility, we have different levels of care. We accommodate people who are recovering from an ailment. For instance, we have taken care of stroke patients who need time to recover. We bring them here and give them rehabilitative care. We have in-house physiotherapists who come in according to schedules. We also have doctors and registered nurses. All these people can take care of people that have certain illnesses. That’s for people who are recovering.

We also care for people who just want to be taken care of. From massages to cooking for the person, doing their laundry, reminding them of their medication, and taking them to their hospital appointments… we are here for them. If you have a woman who has given birth and has no mother or father, or aunty to do ‘omugo’ and take of them, we are also here for that. We have different sorts of services provided around care.

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