Alhaji Saliu was arrested on Wednesday for attacking one of the doctors at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) in Ilorin, Kwara State. His body was released by the hospital’s staff on Friday. Saliu was imprisoned the previous day.
POSTNGR gathered that on Thursday, the deceased’s relatives received the detained body in preparation for burial.
However, the sources who spoke with our reporter were unable to clarify whether one of the deceased’s three children who was detained by hospital security for allegedly attacking the doctor had also been freed.
One of the dead’s sons was detained on Wednesday for reportedly assaulting a doctor in the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department amid claims that the medical staff’s subpar behavior caused the deceased Alhaji Saliu, a butcher, to pass away.
According to reports, three members of the deceased’s family allegedly assaulted a doctor on Tuesday in the UITH’s Accident and Emergency (A&E) Wing because they believed the medical staff’s carelessness contributed to the death of their relative. The deceased’s name was Alhaji Saliu.
Shortly after the hospital revealed that their cousin, who had blood cancer, had passed away, problems began.
The deceased, who apparently had issues after returning from a business trip, was sent to the institution in critical condition on Tuesday.
According to Mr. Abdul, a relative of the deceased who confirmed the news, the hospital seized the body as a result of an attack on a doctor.
Abdul revealed that Alhaji Saliu was brought to the hospital’s emergency room on Tuesday a little after 5:00 a.m. despite repeated requests for a doctor to attend to him.
“We were surprised to see doctors coming to attend to us several hours later after medical personnel who saw our plight confirmed he was dead.
“That infuriated the relatives and they reacted by descending on one of the doctors that came. Since then, they have vowed not to release the corpse unless we produce some other people that beat the doctor”, he revealed.
The Head, Corporate Affairs Unit of the UITH, Mrs. Elizabeth Ajiboye, could not be reached at the time of this report.
Following the incident on Wednesday, Mrs. Elizabeth Ajiboye said, doctors under the aegis of the Association of Resident Doctors of Nigeria (ARD) in the hospital protested the assault, and urged the management of the hospital against the release of the corpse without arresting and prosecuting the culprits”.
Mrs. Ajiboye, urged members of the public to stop attacks on health workers, explaining that the patient’s case was presented late with severe complications.
She said the patient in question was one of such cases presented to the hospital late and with severe complications. Nevertheless, the health workers on duty, especially doctors swung into action but while battling for his life, he convulsed. He was stabilized from that stage, prompting the doctors to take over another case requiring emergency attention.
“Three of the patient’s relatives pounced on one of the doctors on duty, pinned him to the wall, and punched him severally but he managed to escape from them.
“The assault led to the arrest of one of the patient’s relatives by the security operatives attached to the hospital.
Doctors under the aegis of the Association of Resident Doctors of Nigeria (ARD) in the hospital protested the assault and the Management of the hospital against the release of the corpse without arresting and prosecuting the culprits.
“It has now become imperative for the hospital to caution patients and their relations against any form of attack on its health care providers,” the management stated.
