Date: 2014-11-25

Two weeks into the industrial action embarked upon by the Joint Health Staff Union (JOHESU), the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) has recorded death of patients on admission, Pilot Health can report.

Health workers nationwide under the aegis of JOHESU had embarked on indefinite strike over Federal government failure to meet their demands which include; non –skipping of consolidated health salary skill, CONHESS, 10 and call shift and other professional allowances among others.

Investigation carried out by our reporter revealed that patients on admission at the tertiary health institution have been abandoned to their fate, which has led to the death of about three of them.

A relative of a patient on admission, Mrs. Dupe Adeleke, told Pilot Health that doctors could not perform surgery on patients because surgical equipment needed for the procedure had been allegedly locked up by the striking nurses.

According to her patients are dying daily due to lack of adequate health can, adding that the numerical strength of doctors is insufficient for the patient-population.

"My brother is due for an operation but the doctors have not been able to perform the surgery because they claimed that the striking nurses have locked up the equipment.

"I want to appeal the Federal Government to urgently address the issues raised by the health workers in order to restore peace in the health sector," she added.

A patient, who simply identified himself as Sulyman, said he had been unable to get treatment after undergoing surgery owing to the strike by the health

workers.

"I had surgery before the strike began but now there is no one to attend to me. For my X-ray I had to go to a private diagnostic centre and paid exorbitantly for the service," he lamented.

He then appealed to the Federal Government to find lasting solution to the protracted problems in the health sector so as to prevent untimely deaths as a result of incessant strikes.

Similarly, another patients, Mrs. Fatimoh Ibrahi, decried lull in activities at the hospital occasioned by the JOHESU strike, which according to her is taking toll on patients, noting that the role of nurses and other health workers cannot be undermine in the health sector.

She disclosed that some patients have been removed from the UITH by their relatives to private hospital for better medical care.

Speaking on the development in a telephone chat with our reporter, the Public Relations officer, UITH, Mr. Oba Hassan Kadiri who confirmed deaths of patients on admission, described the situation as unfortunate.

He decried actions of the striking nurses that locked up vital areas in the hospital thus endangering lives of patients.