The management of the University of Calabar has suspended four medical staff attached to the university’s clinic over the death of a year three student of the institution.
The deceased, Ms. Precious Agindi reportedly died on January 28 at the university’s clinic after she was rushed in, in a critical state.
The management has then promised to carry out a coroner’s inquest to unravel the cause of death.
Addressing journalists after receiving the report of the autopsy, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Calabar, Prof. Florence Obi, said that the management decided to expel the staff for showing less than the expected sympathy as healthcare services providers.
“Please note that Ms. Precious had received treatment from other private clinics in town from the scan result and other medications presented to the nurses on duty when she was brought in.
“The panel of inquiry made up of experienced medical consultants and doctors absolved the nurses on duty of any professional negligence but saw elements of lack of emotional commitment as medical professionals.
“While life and death are both in God’s hands, management of the university strongly believe that it is our responsibility to do our best at our respective duty posts to offer the service of care both professionally and emotionally considering our quest for excellence as an academic institution.
“It is on this note that management feels that medical personnel in our medical center must give not just professional services but emotional and psychological services which are more soothing especially when one is on a sick bed.
“Management has, therefore, decided to place all the staff on duty on a 3-months suspension for lack of empathy and psychological support and especially for demanding for money for card against the medical center policy of attending to patients in critical condition first,” she said.
Obi explained that as against earlier speculations, the deceased did not die from a ruptured appendicitis.
“For emphasis, let me categorically state that the death of Ms Precious Agindi had nothing to do with the rumored ruptured appendicitis as her appendix was found at autopsy to be healthy, not inflamed and intact.
“The above investigation has revealed, that the patient was brought to the Medical Centre critically ill and her eventual death shortly after arrival was not as a result of professional negligence by staff of the medical center.
“Also, there is an established clinical condition as cause of death which in deferment to the family and in respect to the dead we do not wish to reveal.
The VC regretted that the incident has given the school a bad name after various rumors were peddled on social media.
“Regrettably, the lies that have been deposited in the public space, conscientiously or unconsciously, as amplified by social media, have had a damaging impact on the reputation and image of our university that my administration is working very hard to protect.
“Management chose not to join issues with peddlers of falsehood at a time of deep sadness and sober reflection.
“These persons without cause hastily blamed the death on the Medical Centre and by extension the university,” she said.
Obi added that the report of the panel of inquiry and the inquest report was jointly received by the representatives of the family, the Benue and Tiv Community in the University, SUG officials, members of the Panel of Inquiry, and the school management.
