Alleged misconduct: Lagos govt vows to probe death of three-year-old in its hospital

The Lagos State Ministry of Health has vowed to probe the death of a three-year-old boy who died of alleged negligence and misconduct at one of the State Government-owned secondary care facilities, the Eti-Osa Maternal and Childcare Centre, Lekki-Ajah in Lagos State.

The promise is contained in a statement issued yesterday by the State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, where he explained that the incident which occurred between Friday, 23 and Saturday, September 24, 2022, was rather unfortunate and sad.

Condoling with the family of the deceased boy, the ministry assured that the circumstances surrounding the sorrowful incident would be dug out.

Part of the statement reads: “For the avoidance of doubt, it is pertinent to note that the management of the facility had also officially reported the incident to the Ministry while an investigation into the allegation and the circumstances surrounding the unfortunate incident has since commenced at the facility level.

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“In the same vein, I have also requested an independent investigation into the incident. Our investigation will include an autopsy, a review of medical records of the patient and additional documents, enquiries from medical staff who attended to the deceased, and the parents of the child.

“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.”

The health commissioner noted: “Our resolve to halt avoidable deaths of neonates, infants and children are 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 for their full cooperation whenever they are called upon in the course of the investigation.”

By Mohammed Taoheed

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