When Mrs. Dora Nkem Akunyili was the
Zonal Secretary (South-east) of the Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund in 1998,
Nigerian doctors gave her what many of her family members considered to be a
health scare. They said she had a growth and needed surgery.
Akunyili, then 44, decided to travel
to the United States, first to get a second opinion and then undergo the
prescribed surgery. The bill for the medical trip was $17,000, including
$12,000 for the surgery.
An expert in Concierge Medicine said
$12000 even 15 years ago would barely scratch the surface to do a full concierge
medicine and work-up even before treatment.