Fire victim dies at UBTH due to doctors’ strike

A patient at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), who is a victim of fire incident, Margaret Edobor, has died due to the strike action by members of Association of Resident Doctors.

Margaret was admitted at the hospital a month after she had a fire accident and when doctors allegedly refused to attend to her after the strike action commenced, the wound worsened.

Elder brother of the deceased, Mr. Sunday Ogbewe, said her late sister was already responding to treatment before the strike started. Sunday stated that he begged the doctors to attend to her but they insisted that they were on strike.

His words, “she had a fire accident and she was admitted here (UBTH). When the strike started, there was no doctor so she contracted an infection. It very painful. I have been crying. She is gone. When it happened, I even called some doctors to attend to her, but they said no. They (doctors) should have human feeling.”

The strike has grounded medical services in the hospital. President of ARD, UBTH chapter, Dr. Owen Omorogbe, said the strike was a national directive in protest against the non-payment of some of their financial entitlements. According to him, only a small percentage of their salaries had been paid since January 2014.

“Most of the work in this hospital and in most teaching hospitals are done by resident doctors. So, when we withdraw our services, we expect that it will have a toll on the populace. It is a painful decision that was informed after several means of dialogue and advocacy failed. We are well aware of the pain it has brought to the people of Edo State,” he said.