Lagos Sacks, Blacklists Facility Managers Of Hospital Where Medical Doctor Died In Faulty Elevator

Lagos State government has sacked and blacklisted the facility managers of the General Hospital, Odan, Lagos Island, following the death of Dr. Vwaere Daiso, a house officer.

Also, the general manager of Lagos State Infrastructure and Asset Management Agency is to immediately proceed on suspension, while the operations and line of reporting of the facility managers have been restructured to involve the hospital management directly.

These actions were taken by the state government based on the initial findings of an investigative panel set up by the government to find out the cause of the elevator accident, a statement by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Information and Strategy, Olumide Sogunle, said on Sunday.

THE WHISTLER last Wednesday reported that Diaso died on Tuesday at the hospital after an elevator she took developed a mechanical failure.

According to reports, the elevator fell from the 10th floor of the building, while Diaso was on her way to the ground floor to pick up a delivery from a dispatch rider.

Earlier last Wednesday, house officers at the hospital protested and demanded justice for the deceased.

It was gathered that Diaso was going to complete her housemanship in two weeks before the tragic incident happened.

According to the statement, findings by the panel showed that the incident happened around 6.50 pm, adding that due to the impact, the elevator doors were damaged and needed to be forced open to rescue the trapped house officer.

“She was extracted at about 7.50 pm and resuscitation commenced immediately. She was wheeled to the emergency room and was immediately attended to by a medical team led by a highly experienced consultant orthopaedic and trauma surgeon. The team was assisted by all house officers who were present at the time. The initial objectives were to ensure a clear airway, maintain breathing, and establish circulation. The team was also joined by two consultant anaesthetists, including the Medical Director, who intubated the patient. Despite all the efforts, she stopped breathing around 8.13pm and Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) commenced. This went on until 8.59pm when she was pronounced dead.

“It is important to state that blood samples for cross-matching had not been taken and there had not been a request for blood at the time CPR commenced; it is not true that blood was not available. The State has a strong network of screening centres where blood is available. Besides, there is a register of voluntary donors who can be mobilised at very short notice.

“It is also important to state that the elevator that crashed was installed brand new in 2021. Elevator experts working with the Lagos Safety Commission have carried out an initial inspection and will be removing the elevator for further mechanical examination to determine why the safety features that should prevent this kind of accident did not work. Their findings will determine if we have a case with the elevator installer,” the statement said.

It informed that the installation and maintenance contractors have been handed over to the police for further investigation and likely prosecution if they are found culpable.

“The police will also investigate anyone else that might have been found to be negligent

“Engineers are working to unravel why all the safety devices of the elevator failed at the same time

“All our staff are fully insured. We have informed our life insurance providers about this incident.

“The Lagos Safety Commission has been directed to immediately carry out an audit of all elevators in public offices. This is besides the usual safety arrangements that have always existed,” the statement added.

it would be recalled that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had ordered immediate investigation to ascertain the cause of the failure of the elevator, and expressed his commitment to ensuring that the investigation would be conducted with utmost transparency and fairness.