The management of Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) has accused PUNCH Newspaper of unethical practise following its publication ‘I have sold everything, including my wedding ring, just to stay alive –Woman allegedly wrongly operated by LUTH doctors’, saying that the story is false and unfair.

Speaking during a press briefing at LUTH, the Chief Medical Director CMD, Prof. Chris Bode, said the publication is a cheap blackmail by the patient, Mrs. Lola Oniyelu, and the PUNCH reporter, Eric Dumo, who used the misinformation to raise money for her renal transplantation surgery.

“Had Mr. Dumo and indeed the revered Punch Newspaper acted professionally, they would have tarred a bit and asked the hospital’s side of the story before rushing to print such falsehood. In fact, they even advertised the purported “wrong surgery performed by LUTH doctors”, a day before the actual publication, damning the hospital’s reputation ahead of the facts”, he explained.

Reacting to Mrs. Oniyelu’s allegation that the operation she had at LUTH in 2015, led to her chronic kidney disease for which she now require kidney transplant, Prof. Bode said the kidney failure is as a result of shock from the ruptured uterus which happened before she arrived LUTH.

“Mrs. Oniyelu possibly developed chronic renal failure subsequent to the complication of her last pregnancy. She arrived in LUTH in shock from an already ruptured uterus and this was what triggered the renal failure during her second emergency. It was not in any way related to anything the doctors who saved her life twice did or did not do”, he said.

According to him, Mrs. Oniyelu, was rushed to LUTH twice, with two unbooked pregnancies that threatened her life. “The first occasion was on July 23, 2008. She was referref from a private hospital in her 8th month of a second pregnancy, with severe hypertention and 2+ proteinura. On admission at LUTH A&E, her blood pressure was highly elevated, gallant efforts were made to save her and the baby, through an emergency Caesarian section.

The second occasion was on June 22, 2015. Again, she was referred as a case of severe preeclampsia with drainage of liquour at 36 weeks, BP of 170/120mmHg and ‘a double fetal heart beat’. She was rushed into the theatre where she had sub-total hysterectomy due to uncontrolled haemorrhage”, he said. The LUTH management, hence implored PUNCH to retract the untrue account published.

Naija media

I remember when LUTH once started refusing to attend to unbooked pregnant women who were rushed in at the last minute.The public outcry was so much and it was reversed. For one they disorganised the whole system, imagine being booked for a CS, you pay, your husband donates blood etc then the night before your surgery 2 women are rushed into the hospital at the point of death; use the blood already grouped and cross matched for you, use up all the supplies meant for your surgery. When you now show up you are told no bed space, no blood available and what looks like hogwash to you. Patients like this woman are the ones who harden medical people's hearts. I can bet she had been told she required CS and instead went to a hospital where she was allowed to push.Now as an emergency she is rushed to LUTH at the last minute and the Thank you she has is to blame the hospital that saved her life for her issues. Why did she not book for antenatal in LUTH after her first expirience, is it not because she felt that if she ran into problems they would rush her there and she would be attended to. Now she has a problem she is blaming them. I pray she gets help and can do the transplant.

When I initially read that first story, the first question on my mind was WHY was she RUSHED to LUTH?

And here we have the answer!!

I hoped this thread wouldn't surface. Sigh...