How Bolanle’s AI Dashboard is Helping Healthcare Workers Prevent Prescription Misuse in Nigeria

Ugo Aliogo

Nigeria’s healthcare system is quietly contending with a growing crisis linked to prescription drug misuse and patient non-adherence issues that frequently go unnoticed until they lead to serious harm. Across hospitals, pharmacies, and rural clinics, the absence of real-time monitoring tools has often meant that warning signs are missed, leaving healthcare providers to respond reactively rather than proactively.

For Bolanle Oluwakemi Deji-Olotu, a pharmacist with years of frontline experience, addressing this challenge has become both a personal mission and a professional calling. Her work led to the development of the Opioid Risk Monitoring & Patient Adherence Dashboard (ORM-PAD) , an AI-powered tool that is being used to help clinicians identify risks early and support better decision-making.

The ORM-PAD platform integrates prescription records, adherence data, and clinical indicators into a unified interface. Unlike traditional systems that highlight issues only after they’ve occurred, ORM-PAD applies artificial intelligence to identify patterns that suggest emerging risks. These include dosage increases, overlapping prescriptions, missed refills, and possible diversion. The platform offers tailored recommendations to support timely interventions.

What makes ORM-PAD particularly relevant in the Nigerian context is its flexibility. In urban hospitals, it integrates with existing digital systems. In rural clinics where internet access may be limited it operates with offline capabilities to ensure frontline workers can still access key insights.

“It was important that the tool work not just in well-equipped centers, but in under-resourced areas where the need is just as critical,” Bolanle explains.

While the dashboard’s initial focus is on opioid misuse, its framework is already supporting broader applications, including chronic disease monitoring, mental health adherence, and vaccination tracking. Bolanle notes that ORM-PAD contributes to a shift toward a more preventative, data-informed approach to care.

Beyond its clinical functionality, the platform includes features that assist regulatory agencies with compliance reporting and resource allocation areas often hindered by data fragmentation in Nigeria’s health sector.

“This isn’t just about opioids,” Bolanle notes. “It’s about empowering healthcare workers to make quicker, more informed decisions regardless of where they are.”

As the platform continues to be deployed across diverse settings, ORM-PAD is offering a new model for using local insight and technology to address longstanding public health challenges. Its role lies not just in addressing current gaps, but in contributing to a more responsive and resilient health system in the future.