Central Aflao Hospital: 2 Nurses Under Investigation For Alleged Negligence In Patient’s Death
The Central Aflao Hospital in the Volta Region and two of its nurses are being investigated for alleged medical negligence in the death of a patient after being denied treatment.
39-year-old Linda Adua died on April 11, 2023, after the nurses allegedly refused to treat her unless she deposited a cash amount of GH¢400.
According to the deceased’s family, despite her and her 19-year-old son’s pleas, the nurses refused to accept mobile money payment for her treatment, leaving the patient unattended until she died.
The family subsequently petitioned the President, the Minister of Health, the Ghana Health Service(GHS) and the Medical and Dental Council for justice.
The Medical and Dental Council and GHS responded to the petition and quickly sent their officers to the hospital to investigate the matter.
Confirming the investigations, the Medical Director of the hospital, Dr Gabrielle Kojo said they released the nurses for investigation after the GHS team visited the facility.
“The police have summoned us to release the nurses involved for interrogation on the matter, which we have done,” he said.
Dr Makafui Dagbasu, the Medical Director of the Ketu South Municipal Hospital, the main referral centre of the municipality, also confirmed that the hospital was currently being investigated over the subject.
An elder sister of the deceased, Abigail Adua narrated that on April 11, Linda asked her son to accompany her to the hospital because she was not feeling too well.
“They reached the hospital around 4:05 a.m., and were met by two nurses on duty, who requested that they made a deposit of GH¢400 before she would be attended to,” Abigail narrated.
She said her sister offered to pay the amount through a mobile money transaction as it was too early to find a vendor to make a cash withdrawal.
The nurses reportedly said electronic transfers were against the hospital’s policy, insisting that her son should go out of the hospital to look for a mobile money vendor.
She added that Linda was left seated in a wheelchair at the hospital’s outpatient department (OPD) complaining of difficulty in breathing while her son travelled about two kilometres in an attempt to withdraw the money.
The son found no vendor to facilitate the cash withdrawal.
Abigail Adua said that when Linda appeared to be dead, the hospital directed her son to take her to the Ketu South Municipal Hospital without a referral note or an accompanying officer, where she was pronounced dead on arrival.