The Lagos State Government has affirmed that proper investigations would be conducted into what led to the controversial death of a three-year-old boy who was claimed to have died at the Eti-Osa Maternal and Childcare Centre, Lekki-Ajah after several injections were passed into his system by a nurse who refused child’s parent.
It said that the roles of nurses who were on duty during the incident and that of the hospital management must also be known to determine what went wrong when the boy was brought into the medical facility alive.
The state government added that through this process the circumstances surrounding the innocent boy’s death would be determined and whatever foul play or negligence that occurred at the time of his treatment would be made available to the public.
The Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, gave the assurance on Wednesday barely three days after the family of the boy, the Nwogu, accused medical staff at the secondary healthcare facility of negligence and absconding with their deceased child’s medical record.
Abayomi, through a statement made available to newsmen, described the incident as unfortunate as well as sad and that the government would not allow such an incident to be swept under carpet.
The commissioner explained that the independent investigations would include an autopsy, a review of medical records of the patient, and additional documents.
He noted that the searchlight would also not exclude the parents of the child and medical staff who attended to the deceased, even though the management of the facility had also officially reported the incident to the ministry.
According to the statement, “I would like to first and foremost express my heartfelt condolence to the family of the deceased and pray for the repose of the soul of the departed.
“Without pre-empting the outcome of the ongoing investigation, I would like to state that this is a Coroner’s inquest case, which is why an autopsy has been requested to determine the actual cause of death. I, therefore, sue for calm and assure members of the public of our commitment to conduct a transparent and thorough investigation into the incident, and make available the outcome of the investigation.
“Our resolve to halt avoidable deaths of neonates, infants, and children is unshaken. We will continue to vigorously implement policies and strategies geared toward preventing and halting maternal and child mortality in the center of excellence. Once again, I commiserate with the family of the deceased and request their full cooperation whenever they are called upon in the course of the investigation”.
Earlier, the mother of the deceased, Loveth Nwogu, explained that her son had Nasal Congestion and she decided to take him to the hospital for proper treatment before resuming school on Monday.
According to her, the first night he was treated and given an injection, her bubbly child vomited and emptied his stomach before sleeping off.
The mother of the deceased three-year-old child narrated that the second time was what took the life of her boy at the hospital.
Nwogu alleged that the doctor and nurse who injected the child had absconded after they discovered that the boy had breathed his last and since the incident, they were yet to explain the reasons for the incident.
The mother maintained that the hospital should be investigated for negligence and for going ahead to report the incident at the Ogombo Police Station in Ajah without first explaining the circumstances that resulted in their child’s death to them.
