40-year-old Mr. Godwin Ebodagbe was rushed to the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) with gun shot injuries sustained after a robbery attack at a facility in Agbara, Ogun State, where he was posted as a Police officer.
Ebodagbe was admitted into LUTH's accident and emergency room on the November 19, at 4:13pm with an eight-hour history of gunshot injury at the back with associated bleeding from the gunshot wound.
The police officer with hospital number 658887 was resuscitated with intravenous fluids, analgesics, antibiotics, and his blood was obtained for investigations.
The Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon who was in charge of Ebodagbe's case, Dr. Israel Akinmokun, noted that Ebodagbe was diagnosed of gunshot injury which affected his spinal cord. The surgeon later asked him to do thoracolumbar radiographs and abdominopelvic ultrasound scan.
Two days later the specialist discovered that he was yet to do the CT myelogram as requested. "I explained to him that the decision to intervene surgically would be based on the availability of this investigation," said Dr. Akinmokun.
But the patient replied that finances were the problem. This revelation prompted the doctor to ask him why he was not on the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) as many of the public servants.
He later encouraged him to ask any of his colleagues to help him. The following day, one of his brothers arrived and decided to take care of the cost of the CT myelogram.
But rather than doing the scan recommended by the surgeon, the radiologist suggested that Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) should be requested.
"I wrote a small note to the radiologist on the reason for the choice of investigation but a reply insisted that MRI would be better. I was later informed that the MRI machine has been down since Saturday, 21st, November. I, thereafter, sent a request by text message to the Chairman Medical Advisory Committee (CMAC) to allow the patient leave the premises for the MRI investigation by 1:26pm...
"He eventually had the MRI done on Wednesday, November 25, and was admitted and transferred to ward E2 that same day. The brother discussed his concerns about what he overheard the radiologists saying about scattered rays but I assured him not to worry about that. The brother was to return for the MRI report later that night.
"On the November 26, I was informed that he requested for a referral to University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan due to proximity to his place of abode and that of his relations. His request was granted and a referral letter was written to that effect. He left after completing his clearance."
But the patient and his relatives differ. They complained of the attitude of the health workers and the insistence that an MRI test, which costs about N70, 000, must be carried out before a surgery was performed on Ebodagbe.
Source: All Africa News
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