Five fresh deaths rock UNIMEDTH over alleged negligence

Mrs Esther Adeola, a former Administrative Officer at the Federal Government Girls College Akure, and her four grandchildren died of reported food poisoning.

According to reports, the 68-year-old retiree and her grandchildren, aged nine, eight, and six, died as a result of alleged neglect by young medical personnel at University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital, UNIMEDTH.

This came just two months after Dr Bolanle Alabi, a consultant doctor at the hospital, was charged with alleged negligence in the death of Mr Adedotun Adebobola, a 300-level computer engineering student at Ekiti State’s Federal University Oye (FUOYE). Mr Ademola Adeola, the father of the four children, described how, after ingesting pap, his children suffered a severe stomach ache that ultimately led to their death.

He expressed disappointment with the UNIMEDTH management over poor response and treatment of patients, faulting the hospital for mishandling one of his children’s corpses.

Adeola said: “The pap the children ate was poisoned, and I had rushed them down to UNIMED in Akure. The doctor on duty questioned whether I was certain they were poisoned and advised me to take them home and give them red oil. Since I knew little about health issues, I followed his advice. Around 6-7 pm that Saturday, the children began vomiting even more severely. We took them to Mother and Child Hospital, where they were attended to; but on the second day, we were told that they would be referred to the Federal Medical Centre, FMC, in Owo. Arrangements were made, but the staff later decided that one of the children, Ireoluwa, wouldn’t survive the journey to Owo. So, they referred us back to UNIMED in Akure.”

Adeola revealed that at UNIMED, the doctor who originally cared for the children did his best, but then passed them over to another doctor, who gave them an injection that produced an unfavourable reaction.

He said: “After the injection, one of my children said he felt something entering his body but didn’t know where it was going. Immediately, they all started reacting abnormally. The doctor said it was just a normal reaction to the injection, but soon after, Inioluwa could no longer control himself.

The bereaved described how the doctor tied one of the children to the bed with a bandage and said he believed the injection was to blame for their deaths.

“I also noticed that the second doctor kept checking his phone during treatment. Unlike the first doctor who stayed with the children and monitored them closely, the second doctor would only come out when called in for emergencies, and I overheard him complaining on the phone that he didn’t know what to do next.”

Appealing to the state government to set up an investigative panel to uncover the cause of deaths, the bereaved man said: “We are appealing to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa to investigate this case. The hospital’s management treated us like nobodies, and we need answers.” Meanwhile, the state’s Health Commissioner, Dr Banji Ajaka, denied the allegations that the victims died out of negligence, insisting that the doctors and consultants did their best to save the victims.

Ajaka said: “I was with them at the hospital. There were four consultants and other doctors trying to save the lives of the children but unfortunately, they died. So, it is not true that the hospital lacks the facility to tackle such a case. It was not the fault of the doctors. Unfortunately, this happened.”

The management of UNIMEDTH, for its part, disputed claims of negligence, claiming that all necessary medical treatments were carried out promptly and competently in the treatment of the children.

The hospital’s spokesperson, Roseline Akeredolu, in a statement, said: “The children were brought to the hospital’s Children’s Emergency Unit on September 29, 2024, after being referred from Mother & Child Hospital, Akure. The children showed symptoms believed to be caused by the ingestion of pap containing an ‘unknown poison’. Their grandmother had also passed away days earlier after consuming the same meal.

“Upon their arrival, our medical team immediately received and attended to them, including consultants alerted by the referring hospital. Urgent resuscitation and critical care measures were initiated, and all necessary medical interventions—including resuscitation, toxicology testing, and hourly monitoring—were implemented in line with global best practices. Despite the efforts, the hospital disclosed that the children could not be saved.”