Fatima Okhuosami is a hospital pharmacist, a writer, a humanitarian, and a language student. Her humanitarian work has taken her to many states in Northern Nigeria, her socio-political advocacy has inspired some of her creative stories, and she hopes to win one of the world’s biggest short story prizes. In this interview by KINGSLEY ALUMONA, she speaks about her work and other national issues.
You are a pharmacist, a writer, a humanitarian, and a language (French) student. How did the passion for all these endeavours begin?
I didn’t want to become a medical doctor like my elder siblings, and my dad refused me to study engineering. So, pharmacy was a compromise between us both.
I come from a family of readers. Growing up, we read my father’s Tell magazines and NewsWatch magazines, my mother’s classical novels and poetry collections, everything. Reading became a launching pad for my writing. I started to write about fascinating things that happened in my life and the lives of people around me from early on.
All health workers are by default, humanitarians. Patient care is at the centre of our lives. I’ve always found volunteering with community-based organisations (CBOs) fulfilling. And I gain valuable practical knowledge in return.
From a young age, I wanted to be multilingual. I registered with Alliance Français during my service year to make up for my free time. I plan to study Mandarin and German after I scale DALF C2, but that’s another story.
How long have you been a pharmacist, where do you currently work?
Counting my internship year, I’ve been a pharmacist for almost one decade. Right now, I work with National Hospital Abuja which coincidentally, is where I interned. It’s a tasking but emotionally rewarding job. There are high days and low days. Between the huge client load and complex service delivery system, bureaucracy is a very real thing. Then there’s the age-old pharmacists versus doctors battle that’s always brewing below the surface. Despite these, I believe healthcare professionals are becoming more accepting of each other’s contributions to optimum clinical outcomes. If reincarnation turns out to be real, I’d be a pharmacist again and with luck, a richer one.
These days, given the challenging economic situation of the country, the cost of basic medications has skyrocketed to the point many people can barely afford them. How do you and your colleagues in the hospital manage situations where clients cannot afford the basic medications they need to get well?
Economic challenges are dire, both for clients visiting the hospitals and health workers. Branded medicines are now mostly beyond the reach of the majority of the client base. There has been a major shift towards stocking and dispensing ‘cheaper’ generics whose safety, efficacy, and effectiveness are almost the same as their branded counterparts. Clients on long-term medicines can also purchase several months’ supply at a time, to avoid the risk of subsequent price surges.
If you were to advise the Federal Government on how to make basic pharmaceutical products accessible and affordable to the masses, how would you go about it?
In the hospital setting, the existing twin policies of drug revolving fund (funds from medicine sales reinvested in medicine purchase) and essential drugs list (medicines required to meet priority healthcare needs which must be available at all times, in adequate amounts, appropriate dosage forms, and affordable prices) can mitigate these problems. If DRF is running optimally, the hospital can stock most drugs on the essential drugs list, so clients who visit the pharmacy won’t be informed that their drugs are “out-of-stock.”
DRF cannot operate effectively if clients don’t purchase medicines from the pharmacy (because of affordability issues or frustration from time spent trying to see a doctor, running laboratory tests, etc.) which is usually the last point of service delivery. Long waiting times may be addressed by increasing staff strength. Pilferage of medicines should be reduced to minimal levels.
Let us talk about your advocacy and humanitarian work. What inspired your socio-political advocacy and humanitarian endeavours?
Man is by nature a political animal, so says Aristotle. We can improve our collective socioeconomic status through goal-oriented advocacy. My ‘humanitarian’ endeavours are inspired by a responsibility towards promoting public health as a pharmacist.
Towards the end of 2019, I parted ways with my employer and desired my next full-time employment to be in a different sector than hospital pharmacy. The AIDS pandemic was still somewhat of a hot topic at the time. A friend told me of a non-governmental organisation (NGO) involved in HIV/AIDS prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. Also, I advocate for individuals and minority groups facing discrimination due to a myriad of reasons. I worked with them for a little over two years. Those were happy fulfilling times.
I volunteer with Project PinkBlue because of their work in the field of cancer diagnosis, management, and treatment. I’m familiar with the massive financial, mental, and emotional burden of this disease amongst patients and their caregivers. Luckily there is a revolutionary FGN-funded Cancer Health Fund now.
Which NGOs have you worked with and what was the nature of your work with them?
I worked with the International Center for Advocacy on Right to Health between 2020 and 2022. Although I cannot reveal much as I did sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), it suffices to mention that our scope of operations covered HIV/AIDS sensitisation campaigns, prevention, diagnosis, and management; specific STD diagnosis and management; healthcare delivery to MSMs (men who have sex with men), FSWs (Female sex workers), and transgender men/women; and human rights paralegal services delivery to individuals discriminated against based on their gender identities and/or sexual orientations.
I volunteer my healthcare expertise with Headfort Foundation, SHIFT Nigeria, Brain & Spine Foundation, and a couple of other organisations based on my schedule.
Your humanitarian work has taken you to many states in northern Nigeria. What did such travels, places, and people teach you about life?
I am an introvert. I’ve lived vicariously through books and thus developed a pretty non-judgemental view of people. I know this is at odds with traditional Nigerian society, but my live-and-let’s-live orientation helps me fit into different communities and social spaces easily. The traditions I was raised under may sometimes be at odds with the way of life of other people, but it does not mean we cannot co-exist peacefully.
My travels through the north helped me appreciate a less rabid approach to daily life, being your brother’s keeper, a lower cost of living, etc. However, being a Muslim likely contributes to the comradeship I feel with my neighbours.
Was there any specific/unique experience during your work/encounter with northern Nigerian women that changed your worldview/perception about how people generally, if not wrongly, perceive them to be or live?
Misogyny, patriarchy, and sexism are nationwide issues. Without going into specifics, I’d say against the status quo, northern women are becoming more outspoken and decisive about protecting their rights and not playing second fiddle to men. Girl-child education is on the rise. There is an upsurge in reporting of gender-based violence and intimate-partner violence. These are giant strides towards achieving gender equality. The mystery surrounding key populations is wearing thin because younger generations who are part of these groups are every day, choosing to live their lives on their terms, irrespective of society’s expectations.
As a writer, what do writing and literature mean to you?
Writing is living. As somebody who makes up scenarios, writing allows creating an alternate reality for the characters I conjure – ones with homes either on paper or in the virtual world. It may be overly ambitious of me, but after studying Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and Wilde, I realise names can live through time by one’s craft. I most likely will never attain the skill levels of these authors, but I want my name to be immortal. Art is a tool for political struggle. Creative writing can be used to portray the ills in society, remind us of our history, and stimulate the socio-political consciousness of a population. Ngugi Wa Thiong’O and Elechi Amadi did fantastic jobs in this regard with ‘The Trial of Dedan Kimathi’ and ‘Sunset in Biafra.’
Your short story, ‘The Women of Atinga House’, published in the Johannesburg Review of Books, was the first runner-up for the 2021 Kendeka Prize for African Literature. What inspired you to write the story and what lessons do you want the reader and society to learn from it?
One of my jobs took me to a rather infamous brothel located in the slums around Karimo area of Abuja. I spent hours with the women and men peddling their bodies for cash. The cell-like lodgings, nonstop ear-splitting music, free-flowing laced alcohol, and mistrust each worker held for his/her colleagues fascinated me just as much as the ease with which they trusted a hijab-wearing Muslim.
Through work, I’ve met, talked, laughed, and exchanged stories with many women like the ones who inspired ‘The Women of Atinga House’.
I’d like people to ease up on the stigma against sex work. These are normal people doing what they can, to guarantee survival for themselves and their families.
Where do you see your writing career in five years? Do you see yourself writing that great Nigerian novel and winning prestigious literary prizes?
I hope to publish a critically acclaimed book of short stories. I’ve never been interested in writing a full-length novel, so I hope I can achieve my dreams with short fiction. It’d be wonderful to be published in the New Yorker or shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize.
You are currently learning French. What is your intention of learning the language?
I think French, Mandarin, and Spanish should be taught in all basic schools as these are the languages of the future. China is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. There is a huge demand for translators and interpreters. I have a DELF B2 certificate which means I meet the language requirements to apply for French schooling and/or citizenship although that isn’t my intention in mastering the language. I simply wanted to speak and understand more than just English.
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