House officers at Lagos State Teaching Hospital (LUTH), yesterday, concerns were raised about substandard working conditions and the tragic passing of a house officer, Dr. Umoh Michael, who purportedly worked for 72 consecutive hours.
Dr. Michael reportedly passed away on September 17, following a 72-hour shift in the Neurosurgery Unit. He was said to have gone straight from work to attend church service on Sunday morning, where he collapsed in his place of worship, the United Evangelical Church, around 11:00 a.m.
In a letter addressed to the Chief Medical Director of LUTH, Professor Wasiu Lanre Adeyemo, members of the Association of Resident Doctors (ARD) at LUTH reported that the late doctor’s roommate confirmed that the deceased had barely slept in their shared apartment over the past week.
They asserted that Dr. Michael was consistently on call, often returning home after surgeries and other duties in the Neurosurgery unit around 3:00 a.m.
“We have long-standing challenges since we resumed horsemanship here and one most striking challenge is the bullying we receive from our senior colleagues, stressful call hours without breaks in between, no call food, and no good accommodation”, they said.
In their petition, the doctors requested that House Officers, who were on call the preceding day, should have the option for either half a day off or a delayed start time on the following day. They emphasized that House Officers should not be required to work continuously for 48 hours.
Additionally, they insisted on cost-free or significantly subsidized compulsory health examinations at the commencement of House jobs. Furthermore, they called for their senior colleagues, senior registrars, and registrars to create a conducive work atmosphere, emphasizing that House Officers should not be tasked with duties meant for porters, nurses, or patient relatives.
In response, Omolola Fakeye, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) for LUTH, said: “It is not true that anybody worked for 72 hours. I have not been briefed about his death. We were at a program yesterday (Monday), but I will find out; I can’t say anything now. I will check the medical report of what could have happened because anybody can say anything, but the medical report will show to us what happened,” he said.