An accident victim, James Omase, was reportedly refused medical attention for 3 hours on Saturday by the Kubwa General Hospital, Abuja, over his inability to pay a N3,500 bill immediately.
Omase, pictured above, was taken to the hospital around 6pm but the medical personnel refused to attend to him until around 9pm, when his employer showed up and paid the bill.
Imagine what would have happened if they couldn't make it that night.
The 20-year old was riding a motorcycle along Arab Road, Kubwa, when another rider rammed into him, causing him to fall and sustain injuries.
The man, who worked as a security guard in a residential building, lost two teeth and also sustained an injury on his upper lips, had bruises on his head, right upper arm and on both hands.
Omase told Northern City News that he offered the nurses the N2,500 on him but they declined to accept it, insisting that he would not be treated until he paid the full amount.
He said, “I was involved in the accident around 5pm but nobody took me to the hospital till 6pm. I was on the ground in pains and people were passing by, nobody volunteered to take me to the hospital.
“It was a friend who saw me lying along the road, that took me to the hospital. But when I got there, the nurses said they won’t attend to me until I paid N3,500 for treatment. I told them I had N2,500 but they refused to accept it or attend to me.
“I was lying on a bench in pains for many hours. It was a neighbour, who learnt I was involved in an accident, that went to inform my employers, who came to the hospital around 9pm and paid the money before I was treated.”
The acting Secretary, Federal Capital Territory Hospital Management Board, Mrs. Alice Odey-Achu, expressed disappointment over the conduct of the nurses, saying their action was unacceptable.
She promised to get in touch with the Chief Medical Director of the hospital, insisting that all public hospitals were supposed to attend to emergency cases, with or without payment by the patient.
No comments:
Post a Comment