Family of late Baale’s wife threatens court action against LASUTH as settlement talks collapse

The Family of Mrs Omolara Kalejaiye has threatened to drag the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) to court for alleged unethical conduct of its personnel.

This came after the Hospital denied responsibility over the death of Mrs Kalejaiye, and also refused to endorse a compensation agreement at a settlement meeting between the deceased’s family and the LASUTH management on Monday.

It was reported that 45-year-old Omolara, the wife of the Baale of Otumara II in the Apapa area of the state, was rushed to the hospital in an emergency situation on December 11, 2018 and was reportedly attended to in a wheelchair due to the lack of bed space.

The family alleged that the mother of two succumbed to death as a result of lack of attention by the medical personnel and non-provision of an ambulance after her referral to another hospital.

A letter was written to the Chief Registrar of the Lagos State High Court through a human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), requesting that an autopsy be conducted to unravel the circumstances surrounding Omolara’s death.

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Falana and Falana Chambers also proposed a settlement between both parties before a suit would be filed in court against LASUTH.

The meeting, which had in attendance, the LASUTH legal team, the husband of the deceased, Kehinde Kalejaiye, and his legal representative, Ernest Olawale, however, ended on an indecisive note.

The Director, Civil Litigation, Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Saheed Quadri, said:

“The doctor who attended to the deceased, has been questioned and based on the facts available to us, we have not seen where we have been professionally negligent.

“We can’t negotiate for compensation without asking ourselves if we were really negligent. We wouldn’t mind negotiating but we must be able to prove that the hospital and its personnel have been found culpable. The deceased was never admitted to LASUTH; she was only administered first aid to stabilise her condition before she was referred to another hospital.

“We can only hope that a settlement can be reached and the case is not taken to court; no amount of money can bring back the dead.”

Olawale added that a case would subsequently be filed in court if the settlement did not work.

By Todimu Ogunade…

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