A 55-year-old patient has died of coronavirus-related complications at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), exposing medical personnel and other patients to the virus.
UK-based Nigerian doctor, Dr. Olufunmilayo Harvey disclosed this on Twitter.
He wrote, “A man came to LUTH Lagos. Said he had only fever/tiredness. But he had cough and just came back from Europe – but family hid that information. He died today of Coronavirus. Many doctors and nurses exposed. Pls DO NOT LIE when you go to hospitals. That lie can get people killed.”
Harvey added, “Doctors were exposed. Nurses were exposed. Cleaners were exposed. Many innocent health workers were exposed to the man. Safe precautions were not taken because nobody knew early enough that this was potential Coronavirus. Pls don’t lie at hospital. Lies can kill health workers.
“When you go to hospital, the truth you say is not just for your own good – it is for the safety of those health workers taking care of you. Health workers have loved ones too. If your lies gets a nurse killed, who will raise her children? Pls do NOT lie at hospital. It is evil.
“Also, doctors and nurses can only treat you based on the information you give them. If you hide any vital information, it does NOT help you in any way. You will make doctors treat ringworm when your problem is eczema. Please do not lie at hospital. You harm yourself a lot more.
“This happened at the Accident and Emergency Unit of LUTH in Lagos. And this patient was put in the same space as many other patients. Just imagine the same nurse or doctor that attended to him attended to other people there. The virus may have been transferred. This is evil.”
According to The Punch, quoting an unnamed LUTH staff, the patient returned from Holland two weeks ago, where he underwent a renal transplant but himself and his family members hid his travel history from hospital staff.
Read Also: Kogi governor suspends commissioner who allegedly raped lady over Facebook post
The hypertensive and diabetic patient was checked into the hospital’s emergency unit on Thursday with “malaise , tremors , and fever”, and he gave up the ghost there few hours after, the newspaper reported.
But when a Polymerase Chain Reaction test was done on his blood posthumously, it was discovered that he was COVID-19 positive.
A junior doctor was said to have suspected when he reviewed the patient’s case at the Accident & Emergency Unit and reported his suspicion to the Senior Registrar at the unit.
“After the Senior Registrar reviewed his case and confronted him with their findings, the man revealed the true story about his travels and his fear that he might have contracted COVID-19 but he died shortly afterwards.
“He confessed that he had been coughing and that he had returned from Holland two weeks ago, where he had gone for follow-up treatment after a renal transplant he also had there.
“When confronted after the man’s death, his family members said they withheld the information about his likely COVID-19 infection because they were afraid that LUTH would reject him if they disclosed his true state,” the source was quoted as saying.
Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof Akin Abayomi has yet to confirm the incident.