A foundation, the Advocacy Against Medical Negligence and Malpractice Initiative, AAMENAMI has said patients and citizens reserve the right to make decisions about their own medical care, privacy, and treatment options, stressing that the rights are designed to ensure their respect, safety, and confidential healthcare experiences.

The founder, Mrs. Nkechi Ezike Igogori who made the call during a one-day advocacy campaign on patients’ rights and medical safety to Okohia Osu Community in Isiala Mbano Council of Imo State, yesterday, also advocated for diligence, transparency, accountability and professionalism among healthcare providers in Nigeria.

Igogori said the community advocacy programme, with the theme, “Know Your Rights: Preventing Medical Negligence in Our Community”, was designed to equip citizens with knowledge of their rights as patients and “to help them become active participants in their healthcare.”

She further disclosed that the initiative was born out of a personal tragedy following the death of her 29-year-old son, Ejiro, on October 21, 2023, over alleged medical negligence; adding that the foundation was established to turn her experience of loss into a campaign for patient’s safety and medical literacy.

According to her, “this foundation was not established to work against medical professionals, but to promote better communication and cooperation between healthcare providers and patients.”

She also cautioned against assuming that every death or complication in a hospital amounts to medical negligence, noting that some adverse outcomes may occur despite the efforts of medical professionals.

She said, “the objective of this advocacy is to help members of the public understand the difference between unavoidable medical complications and cases arising from negligence, medical errors or systemic failures.

One of the facilitators, Odera-chukwumma Joseph Egwuatu, a registered nurse, psychiatrist and mental-health-trained nurse, told participants that medical negligence could affect anyone, including healthcare professionals.

Also, one of the participants, Mrs. Esther Ogueri noted that educating patients to speak up is important, but healthcare professionals must also be willing to listen.

She appealed to AAMENAMI to extend its sensitisation campaign to healthcare workers, particularly those in hospitals, ‘so that practitioners would be reminded of their responsibilities as caregivers.”

The event also featured an interactive session, during which participants sought clarification on various health-related issues and received responses from the facilitators.

Some participants further shared personal experiences which they believed were linked to medical negligence and made recommendations on ways to improve patient’s care.