By Chioma Obinna

Patients and visitors at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, Idi Araba, Lagos, fear that they are being exposed to potential outbreak of diseases as a result of the failure of the hospital management to repair a broken sewer system around the hospital’s labour ward complex.

LUTH sewage

Investigations revealed that the sewer whose chamber has been in a state of disrepair for several months, not only constitutes an eyesore but has also become a source of discomfort to patients, passersby and visitors, including those who were there to donate blood at the hospital’s blood bank.

When Vanguard Metro, VM, visited the hospital premises last  week, several persons who passed around the affected area were seen covering their mouths and nostrils due to a nauseating odour emanating from the broken sewer.

To make the situation worse, faeces have been pouring from a broken sewage pipe into the main gutter linking other gutters around the health institution.

Health institution

The areas affected included the patient’s waiting hall below the labour ward; the Association of Resident Doctors, ARD, Lounge; the Modular Theatre and the entire labour ward complex.

It was gathered from a number of witnesses that the bad sewage had remained unattended to despite series of complaints to the authorities of the hospital.

Some of those who spoke to our correspondent lamented negligence on the part of the LUTH management. They said the present situation can be likened to one where a patient goes to the hospital to treat an ailment and ends up contracting something worse.

A hospital staff who confirmed that his department had severally complained about the damaged sewage chamber said there had been no response from the hospital’s Maintenance Department.

“We have tried our best to draw the attention of the Maintenance Department. I mean the engineers, but they have not turned up. We have done so at least thrice. It has been like this for months.”

Reacting to the situation, the Head, Corporate Affairs Department of LUTH, Mr. Kelechi Otuneme, denied knowledge of the problem. “You know the efforts of the management to give the hospital a facelift. It will be better you go to the Engineering Department; that will give us a better view on what they have been doing to fix the place. Ask for the Head of Department, Engineer Ogunkeye.”

The said Ogunkeye was yet to report for work when VM visited his office. But a few hours later he phoned our reporter and said his department had moved to the site.

The telephone conversation went thus: “Is that the lady from Vanguard? My people are there. If you go there now, you will see the place has been cleared. Thank you very much.”

But 45 minutes later, when this reporter went back to check, there was no repair work going on in the area.

A relative of a patient who had spent some days on admission also dismissed the claim of something being done to remedy the situation. The woman who did not identify herself said the maintenance people did nothing as claimed.

“I have been here. They came and poured chemical and went away. At a point, I decided to sweep it away. The sight of it is not good at all. This is what we face every day. We are begging them to help us repair it. This is where we sit because we are not allowed into the wards.

“I sweep and also wash the area with water most times because I sleep here. Many of us have left this area because of the problem. Help us tell them to do it. We are suffering,” she stated.