‘How Doctors’ Negligence Caused My Father’s Death at JUTH’ – THISDAYLIVE

Cynthia Odabe, a civil servant in the Federal Capital Territory, has lamented that if doctors at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) had been a little more diligent in handling her father’s ill health he would still be alive today.

Odabe said her father, Mr. Francis Odabe, fell ill sometime last year and had difficulty in breathing and was taken to the National Hospital, Abuja, from Jos on the 31st of March, 2024, thereafter referred to Kaduna, but later died at JUTH after one year of battling with the ill health.

She said the doctors at the National Hospital found that there was a tumor in his larynx. So, a procedure was carried out on him at the hospital in April when a tracheotomy tube was passed down his throat to collect some tissues for biopsy.

She said, “After the biopsy, the result came out after about a month as papilloma, which was benign (non-cancerous). So they decided that the treatment should be periodic clearing for a space for three months because of his age. The first procedure was done on the 8th or 9th of May, 2024. The clearing afforded them the opportunity to take more samples. They repeated the investigation in the same lab at the National Hospital, and it came back again as papilloma.

“However, the same sample was taken to a private lab for a second opinion, and the result came out as cancer. But the head of Pathology at the National Hospital repeated the investigation, and it came out as papilloma. By this time, my father had returned to Jos, and they gave him a referral from National Hospital to JUTH that should he needed to check his tracheotomy at JUTH. Because of the back and forth in the investigation results, I personally took the tissues to University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada. The investigation was again done there by the H.O.D of Pathology, and the result came out as papilloma again.

“The CMD of the National Hospital, Abuja, therefore called for a tumor board meeting because of the divergent results. After the meeting, my father was referred to the National Ear Care Centre (NECC) in Kaduna (a Centre for Ear, Nose and Throat) since the National Hospital cannot handle the treatment. We got to the Centre in the last week of July. They also did the biopsy in September. They sent one of the samples to ABU Teaching Hospital in Zaria and di one in the hospital. The two results came out as papilloma.”

Speaking further, she said: “Earlier, the doctor handling him at the National Hospital had suggested removal of his voice box. But another doctor advised that with his age that was not a good suggestion. My father too was scared of manual surgery to remove his voice box because of his age.

“So, at the NECC Kaduna, my father refused to subject himself for the manual surgery. Meanwhile, there is a machine called microdebrider that is safe and fast, but unfortunately, theirs in the hospital was bad. So, we found a doctor in same Kaduna who has the machine in his private hospital. His name is Dr. Mainasara.

“He was contacted, and on the 8th of January, 2025, he carried out the surgery. He also took a sample for biopsy for another investigation. He told my sister that while doing the procedure, he saw an obstruction, so he didn’t clear everything, and that after the investigation, if it comes out as papilloma, he will clear out the obstruction and remove the tracheostomy tube.

“The doctor took part of the sample for investigation, while we were given part of the sample too to take for investigation. We took ours to Jos this time, which came out again as papilloma. But the doctor’s own came out as cancer after taking about a month for the investigation. So, I told him we were not going to go with his result. This was my reason –  we had eight results, only two suggested cancer, while the remaining six suggested papilloma.

“So I demanded that the tissue block be sent back to the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, but the Dr. Mainasara ran away and stopped picking our calls. He eventually sent the tissue block after about five weeks. I took it again to the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, where it was again confirmed to be papilloma.”

According to her, she sent the result to the doctor, but he didn’t respond, adding that after another back and forth, she called him on March 3rd, 2024, and he said he had already done what he could do.

“At that point, I got upset because he carried out a procedure on January 8 and as at March he had not done a post-op. He directed us to take my father to JUTH to meet one Dr. Turaki, that they will do flexible laryngoscopy – passing a flexible tube to feel the site of the surgery to see if there’s improvement or not. There was no paper referral. Dr. Mainasara simply called Dr. Turaki and asked him to do the laryngoscopy for my father.

“This is where it got interesting. The doctors at JUTH humiliated my father and they made him to kneel down and beg them to treat him. There was a doctor that Dr. Turaki asked to flush my father’s nose. The doctor literally mocked my father. Dr. Turaki also treated my father shabbily. “On an occasion, he left my father and said he was going for World Hearing Day. My sister ran after him and begged him. That was when my father had to kneel to beg him to attend to him. He left my father there and walked away. It was at that point that my sister wanted to take my father away from the hospital, before the Dr. Turaki came and did the laryngoscopy.

“Dr. Turaki then reported that what they saw were granulation tissues of a healing site, and that it should be given about a month to see if there was going to be an improvement or not. Unfortunately, after the laryngoscopy in JUTH, they didn’t replace my father’s tracheotomy tube properly. So my father got back home and could not breathe properly. The tube was what was helping him to breathe.

“They went back to the hospital and an X-ray was taken. It was observed that the tube was not properly fixed. Dr. Turaki assured that it had been fixed properly, and that he was going to be kept on observation for that night and be discharged the next day, just to be sure that whatever they did was properly done so that the patient wouldn’t suffer going and coming back.

“They eventually discharged him the following day, and on getting home, my father couldn’t breathe again. They had to return to the hospital the second time.”

Speaking further, she explained that the tube was still not properly placed to clear the congestion in his chest and at that point, all the doctors had deserted him and refused to attend to him until he gave up the ghost. This was on March 14, 2025.

“The Patient Bill of Right says any patient that comes under Accident and Emergency must be attended to, even if they don’t have money, and they must be kept under 24-hour surveillance. In our own case, money was not the problem, but my father was not attended to for 24 hours; the doctors simply deserted him and allowed him to die. He saw his death coming. He had to pen down a note for my sister.

“Secondly, they gave someone else’s drip for my father. These all contributed to hastening his death.

“We went to see the Chief Medical Director of JUTH to give a verbal complaint. He is actually waiting for the written complaint. We were planning for the burial for April and had planned to submit after the burial. But we have decided to defer the burial. We have now written the petition, but we’ve not submitted it to him yet. I have also been advised to write the Senate and House Committees on Public Petitions, and may copy the Health Committee also.”

JUTH Responds to Allegation

Responding to the allegation, the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the Jos University Teaching Hospital, Dr. Pokop Bupwatda, who sympathised with the Odabe’s family said he was happy that THISDAY took the pain to hear the other side of the story.

He said, “It’s very unfortunate; I sympathize with the family over the loss of their father here at the Jos University Teaching Hospital.

“I got to know about it when all the children that were in Jos at that time came to me with their elder brother to complain about the way and manner their father was treated. As you know I cannot really know the details of what transpired until there’s an investigation.

It was by verbal communication they came to express their grievances.

“After sympathising with them, I also commended them for taking the step to come and see me. I told them that when there are allegations of infractions we always want people affected to speak out.

“I then advised them to put it down in writing as there exists in JUTH a standing committee to investigate any alleged negligence by any staff. And I even showed them reports by the committee of previous investigations. The committee is made of seasoned senior members of faculties; professors of good standing. The essence of investigation is to correct, rebuke, or punish any staff found culpable of any form of negligence or misconduct.

“I have been waiting for the formal letter of complaint I advised the family to write, because it is needed to initiate the process of investigation as we are supposed to refer the letter to the standing committee. As I speak with you, the letter has not come. Without the letter, I cannot just approach the committee based on what they verbally told me.”

The CMD said the committee is so powerful and transparent that whoever would be indicted has to appear before it to clear themselves of the allegation.

He said the family even asked what the duration of the investigation would be, and he told them he can’t say until the letter is brought and the enormity of the allegation would determine. “At the moment I won’t be able to say much about it. They mentioned the name of the consultant whom I called, and he gave me his own side of the story, which is quite different from what they narrated. I told the consultant that I have asked the family to write, and that whoever is involved will appear before the committee.

“The Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) tribunal is there saddled by law to give more severe punishment than we can give here, to the extent that the license of an erring doctor could even be withdrawn if found culpable. The tribunal is of the status of a high court. I told them all of these, but they have not written yet,” the CMD added.