The University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Edo State, have refused to release for burial the corpse of a 12 years old who died in the hospital last July.
The hospital is holding unto the corpse as the only means of getting the family of the deceased to offset accumulated hospital bill.
BASIC FACTS
- The University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) has held on to the corpse of a 12-year-old girl, Glory Ekeleyede, over the inability of her parents to offset the hospital bill.
- The father of the deceased said her ailment left the family in a financial crisis.
- The deceased parents are peasant farmers with little income.
WHAT WE KNOW
Two months after the death of 12 years old Glory Ekeleyede, her parents have been unable to get her corpse for burial.
The University of Benin Teaching Hospital are holding unto the corpse until the parents pay N400,000 accumulated hospital bill.
The late Glory died on the 15th of July, after she was unsuccessfully treated at the government owned hospital.
Samson Ekeleyede, the 66 years old bereaved father of Glory said his late daughter’s ailment robbed them of the little money they had and have left them in a financial crisis.
Samson Ekeleyede a peasant farmer, whose wife is a petty trader, said they find it difficult to eat, since their little resources was spent on her futile treatment.
NOTABLE QUOTES
Samson Ekeleyede speaking to NAN said, “the child died on the 15th of July and since then she has been in the mortuary.
“I went to plead with them; they said it’s not their making. They said I have to pay. They said they used oxygen and that is why the money is high. You used oxygen; the oxygen did not work.”
“If the child is alive now, it’s another thing. But they said till I pay, they will not release her body to us to bury it. I have been going there, but they refused.
“I told one of my fathers in the church. He was very touched and he wrote a letter to the government. He said I should take it to the office of the deputy governor.
“That time the governor was on leave; he was the one acting. The day I took it there was when Governor Obaseki returned from his leave. I gave it to the PRO.
“That is the person my father in the church said I should give it to. I think he also mentioned it to the wife of the deputy governor. Since then, we have been waiting, but nothing has happened”.
“I learnt tailoring but that is not what I am doing. I am doing small jobs outside to feed my children. My wife sells tomatoes and pepper in the market and that is how we have been managing,” he said.
When contacted on the matter, the spokesperson of the UBTH, Uwaila Joshua, said, “There’s presumption that when you receive care, you are to pay for it”.
TAKEAWAY
Of the many things that need to be fixed in Nigeria, health insurance can’t be over emphasized.
If the country have a comprehensive health insurance that take care of the very poor, and middle class, health care will become more accessible where it is available.
I can imagine how horrifying it is for this family to think that two months after what is in itself a painful scenario: to loose a child, they are denied the corpse because they can’t pay.
This is not a case of blaming the hospital personnel or seeing them as mean, at least not on account of this, as they may also give account of everything used in the hospital. However, if we have a health system that carter for the very poor or even children of school age, the likes of Glory and her parents would be a little relief.
