Assessment of Awareness of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation Among Healthcare Providers in Kaduna State

The Nigeria Data Protection Regulation 2019 imposes specific obligations on healthcare providers handling patient personal data, and assessing awareness of these obligations among Kaduna State healthcare workers provides a compliance baseline for the health sector. This study assessed NDPR awareness among healthcare providers in Kaduna North, Kaduna South, and Chikun Local Government Areas, Kaduna State, North West Nigeria. A descriptive survey was conducted among 180 clinical and administrative healthcare workers from public and private facilities. The instrument measured awareness of NDPR existence, knowledge of specific requirements (consent, data subject rights, breach notification, privacy notices), self-assessed compliance, and barriers to compliance. Results showed that 48.3 percent had heard of the NDPR. Awareness of the requirement to obtain patient consent for data processing was held by 34.4 percent. Knowledge of data breach notification obligations was present in only 19.4 percent. Perceived compliance was rated positively by 26.7 percent of respondents. Training in data protection was absent for 83.3 percent. Private facility staff showed higher awareness than public facility staff (p < 0.05). The study concludes that NDPR awareness among Kaduna healthcare providers is very low and recommends NITDA-led health sector NDPR compliance training, mandatory data protection officer appointment in healthcare facilities above a specified size, and simplified NDPR guidance materials in Hausa and English for northern Nigerian healthcare workers. Keywords: NDPR awareness, data protection regulation, healthcare providers, Kaduna State, regulatory compliance