Doctor Dies After Elevator at Lagos Hospital Falls from 10th Floor

Ilesanmi AdekanbiAugust 2, 2023

2 minutes read

A tragic incident occurred on Monday at the Lagos Island General Hospital, Odan, where a medical doctor, Dr. Vwaere Diaso, lost her life after a faulty elevator she was in plunged from the 10th floor of the building.

Dr. Diaso, a Babcock University graduate, had only two weeks left to complete her housemanship.

According to Big Amara, a Twitter user who shared the news, Dr. Diaso had gone to get her food from a dispatcher downstairs when the elevator malfunctioned and dropped to the ground.

She was trapped in the elevator for an hour before she was rescued and taken to the emergency ward. However, she succumbed to her injuries due to lack of blood and proper care.

Big Amara tweeted: “A doctor who had just 2 weeks to complete her housemanship just died in a general hospital (Odan, Lagos island) due to poor management and negligence!!! The elevator she was in, fell from the 10th floor to the ground! The video was so painful to watch.”

The video, which was sent to Big Amara by an anonymous person, showed the horrific scene of the accident and the agony of Dr. Diaso’s colleagues and friends. The anonymous person also revealed that the elevator had been faulty for over a year and that the management had ignored several complaints from resident doctors. The person also alleged that there was a case of embezzlement involving the funds meant for repairing the elevator.

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The person wrote: “This is the video. The elevator hasn’t been working well for the past year. Whoever was in charge ate the money and the management has been patching it up despite complaints from resident doctors. They are still even owing salaries of doctors that worked last year Dec but we have no one to fight for us. If you talk they threaten you with License suspension.”

More people have since joined Big Amara in calling out the management of the hospital for negligence and possible corruption. They also demanded justice for Dr. Diaso and accountability from those responsible for her death.

One Olanrewaju Aiyepola tweeted: “Particularly aggrieved because we’ve complained for a long time about this elevator. We’ve maneuvered, managed, and prayed each time we had to use it. Empty promises will be made to fix it…till it killed one of us. Everyone responsible either directly or indirectly must be held accountable.”

Kiky Festus, who visited a friend at the hospital, also tweeted: “I’m so angry cause they have been complaining about this elevator for years. Even when I go visit my friend more than 2 people can’t go in it and if it stops at the 6th floor you have to use your hands to close it yourself and step back behind a line to even out your weight.

“All she wanted to do was get her food from a dispatcher downstairs It even took them an hour to get her out of the elevator She was still conscious even with fractures, she was taken to emergency and then another delay, no blood. This country failed her.”

The Lagos Island General Hospital, Odan, is one of the oldest and largest public hospitals in Nigeria. It was established in 1893 by the colonial government as a military hospital. It later became a civilian hospital in 1923 and has since served as a referral centre for various medical cases.