Man whose pregnant wife has been in coma at Bauchi hospital after undergoing surgery without his consent demands justice

By Mohammed Kaka Misau

Husband of a woman who went through surgery after child delivery without his consent at Misau general hospital in Bauchi state, Ismail Ahmad of Unguwar Kesala has appealed to the relevant authorities to ensure justice is done to his wife.

The husband who lamented that since his wife was operated upon on ground that she was seriously bleeding and that she need to undergo a surgery to remove the remnants of the placenta that might perhaps been left behind after child birth said, the health condition of his wife has continued to deteriorate.

Ismail who is accusing the Doctor that carried out the surgery on his wife even after delivery of negligence, added that she has been lying critically ill at the Misau general hospital before she was referred to the federal medical center Azare.

“My name is Ismail Ahmad of Unguwar Kesala in Misau, I am the husband of Khadija Mohammed Damina whom we took to general hospital Misau on Monday 4th July, 2022 around 6.30am”, he said.

“When we took her there, she was admitted to a labor room at the hospital and as a man I was ordered to go outside and I obeyed, leaving my sister Sa’adatu and one of the hospital staff. Later on, my sister was sent to lab with a blood sample of my wife for observation and the other female staff also left”, he said.

Acoording to him, he was waiting outside when he heard a female staff shouted that his wife has fallen off from the hospital bed while struggling alone in the labor room.

“We rushed in and carried her back to the bed, after that, I was still ordered to go out. Few moments after, I was told to pay N3000 for some injections which I did. They asked me to go and come back later. I was at home trying to eat then I received a phone call around 11 that I should go and buy drugs they have prescribed, I went to A.A Umar shop and purchased the drugs at the cost of N900 and handed it over to them. Few moments again, I was called to go and buy same drugs I bought earlier and I did”, Ismail narrated.

Ismail who said, few moments after he went gone home, he was called on phone to be informed that another drugs have been prescribed for him to purchase before he was later informed that his wife has delivered after he left to go and get the drugs, adding that on arrival, he was told to go and get two sachets of blood to be transmitted to his wife.

“They said it was an emergency because she was bleeding, so, we borrowed two sachets of the blood at the laboratory after they transmitted it to her, they requested for additional two sachets and looked for another two sachets of the blood and gave them”, he said.

Ismail said, when he sought to know how his wife delivered from his mother, she informed him that the Doctor said the baby was dead in the womb and his wife cannot deliver on her own because she has exhausted her energy.

“She said that the Doctor used an iron to forced the baby out on assumption that the baby was dead without carrying out any scan. So they kept the baby aside with bruises in his face, thinking that he was dead, after about ten minutes they heard him crying”, Ismail revealed.

He said that the hospital kept on demanding additional blood apart from prescription of drugs but no improvement was recorded on the health condition of his wife who has been unconscious since the surgery was performed on her.

Ismail who said at some points they were assisted by some blood donors, noted that a particular drugs was prescribed for them which they couldn’t get in Misau until the following day when they sent for it in Azare.

“We were searching for where to get the drugs when I was called to be informed that the Doctor said surgery will be perform on her and before I got to the hospital they had taken my wife into the theater room. When I arrived, I was told that the Doctor is with her in the theater room and we waited outside. After some time the Doctor came out. When my mother enquired to know what was going on, he said “nothing, we are performing the surgery”, and went to his office before going back to the theater room. After about five minutes he came out to announce that the surgery has been concluded”, Ismail narrated.

He said when he questioned why a surgery was performed on his wife without his approval, the Doctor told him that it was assumed that the placenta got teared or damaged and that the only way to save her life was to perform the surgery and remove it.

“He did that without my consent or any of her relative signing a document to that regard. He ordered that my wife be taken to maternity ward and she was there for about 40 minutes before he went back to check on her because he was attending to another woman in the labor room”, Ismail said.

Adding that, “at about 6.00am the following day, he told us that we have to get those drugs we were unable to get yesterday, we sent for it in Azare and we were lucky to get the drugs, it was close to 10 o’clock in the night and the drugs were administered to her and they also gave her injection”.

He said “the following day, Tuesday, at about 11.00 o’clock, the Doctor ordered that my wife should be placed on oxygen, she was swelling and the following day Wednesday he requested for additional four sachets of blood and her mother told the Doctor that the situation is beginning to cast fears in her”.

“We were waiting to hear from the Doctor if he can insist on adding the blood before I left after a while when he didn’t talk about it again. When I came back, her mother told us that the Doctor informed her that my wife’s kidney has developed problem, and that was why she can not urinate”, he added.

He said that the doctor ordered my wife to undergo dialysis but her mother opposed it on fears that most people don’t survive dialysis.

“We were there, luckily enough, seven visiting Doctors came from ATBU teaching hospital, Bauchi. After having some time with the Doctor, three of them came to the maternity ward, they went to the bed my wife was lying on, they put cartata on her and directed that we take her to federal medical center Azare if she was unable to pass urine after one hour”, Ismail further explained.

He said after an hour without passing urine, the Doctor wrote a referral letter to federal medical center Azare, and an ambulance was provided in which he paid N5000 for fuel.

According to Ismail, at the FMC Azare, his wife was taken to Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the hospital where he was called upon to explain what happened.

“After I explained everything to them, the lady that listened to my explanation kept wondering, why I allowed them to hold my wife at the general hospital for long despite her deteriorating condition”, he said.

Ismail who said the female staff he met at FMC Azare was bitter about it and she queried him, after which they prescribed some drugs for his wife.

He said after apologizing, he made it clear to her that, as a learned person, he wouldn’t want to interfere in another person’s line of duty, as he is not a medical doctor to know whether the required treatment was been given to his wife or not.

“I explained to them that we are literate people and we know that there is profession in every field and therefore, there is no sense in interfering with someone’s job, we believe that one should be allowed to discharge his duty in line with his professional calling without interference, we are not health workers and we don’t know that they were not doing the right thing”, he clarified.

Ismail said when they brought the baby to the hospital as requested, the doctors said that the child would also be admitted due to injuries he suffered in the face, but he pleaded that the hospital allow them to treat him at home due to lack of funds.

He cried that his wife has remained unconscious despite bringing her to FMC Azare and the efforts made by the doctors, adding that all the needed drugs have always been purchased to help resuscitate her.

Commenting on the matter, Dr. Aminu Musa Bello, Senior Medical Officer in Bauchi Hospital Management Board said that he was directed by the board to go and take over the affairs of the general hospital in Misau.

According to him, he was directed to henceforth, perform as the Chief Medical Officer of the general hospital pending when his posting letter would be sent to me.

“I called the chief nursing officer to inform him and he acknowledged that he has been duly informed about the new development and I have gone there, sat down with him and other management team of the hospital among others”, he said.

The Doctor said around 5.23 pm, he was called to be informed that his posting letter as a medical officer in charge of Misau general hospital was ready, adding that he has since received the letter.

He said after a management meeting at the general hospital Misau, he led other officers on a visit to the child that was delivered at the facility before her mother was referred to FMC Azare.

“We visited the child and we thank God that the boy is relatively okay apart from some scars on his head. But the boy is okay. I gave the guardians my phone number so that they can call me if there’s any issue and we were able to offer them little so that they can use it to buy pampas or any other thing.

While sympathizing with the family of the woman, a Doctor who was assaulted, the woman herself and the entire people of Misau, the Doctor informed that the zeal of every medical personnel is to safe lives and safeguard the health needs of the people.