A crisis is looming at the Ondo State Trauma and Surgical Centre, Ondo State, after a medical doctor, identified only as Dr Ajibola, allegedly assaulted a nurse, Olayinka Oladele.
News men gathered that the duo had a confrontation last Saturday over a porter.
Oladele had allegedly sent the porter, identified as Jimi, on an errand when he was allegedly intercepted by Ajibola, who gave him another task.
The nurse, on discovering that her assignment was abandoned, reportedly fought back by ordering the porter to leave the doctor’s task.
This was said to have started an argument between the medical practitioners.
In a fit of anger, the doctor allegedly kicked a bucket of water at the nurse before bathing her with waste water from the wound irrigation of a patient.
Nurses at the hospital were said to have protested against the assault as they threatened to down tools.
Oladele, in a report she wrote on the incident to the Chief Medical Director of the centre, Dr Wole Ige, said some nurses at the medical facility were witnesses.
She said, “I was at my duty post on the said date with two other colleagues and two porters. Around 11.30pm, I sent one of the porters, Mr Jimi, to the pharmacy to get drugs for a patient. While the pharmacy technician was dispensing the drugs, the porter left him and went to the crash room without any notice.
“This was discovered when a medical student, who was in the crash room, came to call the second porter for help. In response to the call, I and nurse Egunranti rushed into the crash room. We met a new patient and the porter, Mr Jimi, irrigating a patient’s wound. The medical student was holding on to grey cannula and tourniquet; Dr Ajibola was on glove.
“I challenged the porter, Mr Jimi, for his failure to complete his previous task and for sneaking into the crash room without notifying me that there was a patient newly admitted into the crash room. I told him to return to the pharmacy where he was initially sent.
“The doctor in the crash room confronted me that I had no right to order the portal while he had assigned him to assist him in the crash room. I responded that the porter could go since I was on the ground to assist him with anything that he had to do.”
She said the doctor threatened that if the porter left the room, he would follow him, adding that she also maintained her stance.
Oladele said Jimi bowed to her request, which angered the doctor who allegedly began insulting her in the presence of the patient.
She noted that he asked the medical student to leave as the second porter, Victor Akinola, walked in.
“I replied to him that it was not Mr Jimi’s duty to irrigate the patient’s wound, though I met him securing an intravenous access under his watch on the previous patient during the same shift.
“This angered him and he kicked the trolley that had the bowl of water used for patient wound irrigation towards me; the water splashed on me.
“I reacted by asking him, ‘I guess what just happened was a mistake, right?’ Surprisingly, he carried the bowl of water already used for the patient’s wound irrigation and poured it on me from head to toe in the presence of the porter, Mr Victor Akinola, and the patient.
“I screamed and other workers from the unit rushed in to the crash room. A worker at the health information management section assisted me out. I went to take my bath and have a change of clothes and continued my duties,” she added.
It was gathered that the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, Ondo State branch, had taken up the matter.
It was also learnt that nurses at the centre had been asked to down tools, as there were allegations that the hospital management had decided to keep mute on the matter.
The doctor, when contacted, did not pick his calls and had yet to respond to a text message sent to him on the incident.
However, the CMD of the Ondo State Trauma and Surgical Centre, Ige, said a panel had been set up to investigate the incident.
He said, “To enforce discipline and make the case official, when she called me and said she had been assaulted, I asked her to put it into writing. She alleged that the doctor poured water on her on Saturday around 11pm.
“Early Monday morning, I called a director to get the report of the nurse and ask the doctor to respond to the allegations. I asked that a panel should be set up to investigate the matter.
“At about 11am, I was in the theatre when about four head nurses came to me and changed into theatre gowns. They said they were angry that nothing was being done about what happened to the nurse. I asked if I was supposed to arrest or suspend the doctor without first hearing from him. We are supposed to give him 48 hours to respond. When I came out of the theatre that day, I discovered that the doctor had also reported the nurse.”
Ige said Ajibola, in his report, claimed that a patient had arrived in the accident and emergency unit and when he called nurses to join him in the treatment, he was ignored.
According to the CMD, the doctor claimed that an orderly, however, joined him in the room.
Ajibola reportedly said after about two hours of working with the orderly, Oladele walked in and ordered the man to leave, offering to assist instead.
The doctor was said to have disagreed, which led to an altercation between him and the nurse.
“As of that Monday afternoon, that was the position. There was a public holiday on Tuesday.
“On Wednesday, we set up an investigative panel. If you set up a panel, you need to inform the committee members. However, around 10am of that day, I saw the nurses having a meeting. I asked them what they wanted and they said we should have suspended the doctor, which is not possible. He has to respond,” he added.
Ige said the investigative panel was expected to turn in its report by Tuesday.
It was reported that orderlies at the centre had taken over the duties of nurses after the latter went on a strike, which was recently called off.
The situation was reported to have caused disaffection among the health workers.
