Hippocratic Betrayal: Fatigue, Weak Accountability Fuel Rising Medical Errors in Nigeria

Nigeria’s healthcare system is facing renewed criticism as medical errors—ranging from wrong diagnoses to delayed emergency care—continue to harm patients and devastate families. Experts warn that many of these mistakes, often unnoticed by the public, stem from fatigue, poor accountability, and systemic failures within hospitals.

Across the country, patients report experiences that have left them permanently scarred or grieving the loss of loved ones. While a few high-profile incidents spark public outrage, many others pass quietly, especially among families with limited resources.

Health experts say stronger clinical governance, better training for healthcare workers, and systemic reforms could significantly reduce cases of medical negligence.

A life forever altered

For Awele, a woman now in her early 40s, a medical decision taken when she was 27 changed the course of her life.

She had long struggled with severe menstrual pain, and a medical scan later revealed a growth in her womb. While a junior radiographer warned that surgery could be complicated and might damage the womb due to the mass being deeply embedded in tissue, the consultant surgeon reportedly dismissed the concerns.

According to Awele, the doctor assured her the operation would be straightforward and that her womb would remain intact.

However, during surgery, the growth proved difficult to remove and was tightly embedded in the muscle tissue. After the operation, she was informed that the damage to her womb was irreversible.

At the time, Awele had been in a six-year relationship and hoped to marry and start a family. The loss of her womb eventually ended the relationship and altered her future.

“The doctor said it was either my womb or my life. But the decision had already been made for me,” she recalled, saying the emotional impact still resurfaces during family gatherings and celebrations.

A family’s painful loss

Sharon’s experience also reflects the devastating consequences of medical lapses.

Her 70-year-old mother, Alice, had lived independently in Lagos while managing hypertension and cataracts. In November 2025, she developed fever and weakness and was diagnosed with malaria and critically low potassium levels.

After receiving treatment, she regained consciousness within two days and was discharged. But days later, she collapsed at home and was rushed back to the hospital.

According to Sharon, doctors later discovered that a nurse had failed to administer some prescribed medications, worsening Alice’s condition. Her health deteriorated rapidly, leading to seizures and breathing problems.

The family arranged for her transfer to a government teaching hospital for advanced treatment. However, Alice reportedly spent about six hours waiting in an ambulance for an available bed despite the family agreeing to pay more than N1 million upfront for intensive care.

During that period, Sharon said oxygen supply became inconsistent. At one point, her mother was reportedly taken off oxygen during an X-ray procedure despite being unstable.

Soon afterward, she stopped breathing. Resuscitation efforts failed, and she was pronounced dead.

For Sharon, the circumstances surrounding her mother’s death highlight deeper problems in the healthcare system, including delays, poor monitoring, and financial barriers to urgent care.

A shocking post-delivery discovery

Another woman, Christabel, experienced a disturbing incident after delivering her baby at a private hospital in Lagos.

Following childbirth, doctors used maternity pads to control postnatal bleeding. She was discharged soon afterward, but weeks later she noticed a strong, foul odour.

Concerned, she checked and discovered that two thick postpartum pads had been left inside her body.

After removing them herself, she said the abdominal discomfort she had assumed was normal post-delivery pain disappeared immediately.

Although she considered confronting the hospital, her husband advised her to let the matter go.

A widespread problem

Medical negligence occurs when healthcare professionals fail to meet accepted standards of care, leading to harm. This can include misdiagnosis, surgical mistakes, improper treatment, or poor monitoring of patients.

Globally, the World Health Organisation (WHO) identifies medication errors as a major cause of preventable harm, contributing to more than three million deaths annually. Up to 80 per cent of such harm is considered preventable.

WHO estimates that medical errors cost the global economy about $42 billion every year.

Low- and middle-income countries bear the greatest burden due to weak monitoring systems, limited resources, and under-reporting of incidents.

Evidence from Nigeria

Studies suggest that medication administration errors are the most common form of medical mistakes in Nigeria.

A 2025 study published in the African Research Journal of Medical Sciences found that 58.6 per cent of healthcare workers surveyed in Edo State admitted to making a medical error. Dose omissions accounted for more than 60 per cent of the mistakes.

Other reported problems included laboratory errors, poor communication with patients, equipment failures, misdiagnoses, and hospital-acquired infections.

Public perception mirrors these findings. A nationwide poll conducted in September 2025 by NOIPolls revealed that 43 per cent of respondents had either personally experienced or witnessed a medical error.

Another study published in JAMA Network Open showed a sharp decline in public confidence in healthcare institutions—from 71.5 per cent in April 2020 to 40.1 per cent by January 2024.

Among surgeons, a 2023 study found that wrong clinical judgment accounted for over 93 per cent of surgical errors among respondents. Yet fewer than 40 per cent of surgeons said they disclosed such mistakes.

Recent cases spark outrage

Several recent incidents have intensified public scrutiny.

One widely reported case involved the death of the 21-month-old son of Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Adichie at a private hospital in Lagos. Allegations of denied oxygen and excessive sedation led to a government-ordered investigation. The Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) has suspended the doctors involved pending the outcome.

In Kano, the death of a woman named Aisha Umar also triggered outrage after her family alleged that surgical scissors had been left inside her abdomen during an operation. Authorities suspended three hospital staff members while investigations continued.

Government response

In response to rising concerns, the Federal Government recently announced the creation of a National Task Force on Clinical Governance and Patient Safety.

Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, said the initiative aims to address systemic weaknesses in healthcare delivery, including misdiagnosis, poor communication between doctors and patients, and weak accountability systems.

Doctors urge caution

Medical professionals, however, warn against rushing to conclusions.

The President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Prof. Bala Audu, said medical negligence can only be determined after thorough peer review investigations.

According to him, the goal of reporting medical errors is not necessarily punishment but improving systems to prevent future incidents.

“Medical negligence is reported to bring correction to the system, not simply to punish individuals,” he said, noting that cases can be submitted through the MDCN’s official complaint channels.

System under pressure

Experts also point to systemic pressures on healthcare workers.

The President of the Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria (MDCAN), Prof. Chidi Ndukuba, said Nigeria’s severe shortage of doctors means a single physician may be responsible for thousands of patients.

Such overwhelming workloads, he said, increase the risk of errors.

Similarly, Lagos chairman of the Association of Nigerian Private Medical Practitioners, Dr Jonathan Esegine, warned against judging doctors solely through public opinion without understanding the medical context of complications.

Meanwhile, the President of the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria, Casimir Ifeanyi, blamed some diagnostic failures on fake or substandard laboratory equipment and reagents.

Call for reforms

Health experts agree that while medical errors cannot be completely eliminated, they can be significantly reduced.

They advocate improved staffing levels, better training, stronger regulatory oversight, and systems that encourage transparent reporting of errors.

Without such reforms, many fear that tragedies like those experienced by Awele, Sharon, and others may continue to occur within Nigeria’s fragile healthcare system.