COURT DISMISSES N50M NEGLIGENCE SUIT AGAINST JUTH, CMD SAYS JUDGMENT VINDICATES HOSPITAL’S PEDIATRIC TEAM, SYMPATHIZE WITH VICTIM FAMILY SAYS NO VICTOR NO VANQUISH.

CMD: “The Judgment Has Exonerated Us”

Reacting to the ruling, the Chief Medical Director of JUTH, Dr. Pokop Wushipba Bupwatda, said the decision has cleared the hospital and its staff of allegations of negligence, particularly those bordering on the Pediatric Department.

“I’m really glad and happy to get the news of the judgment that was delivered last week on the case of purported negligence by the staff of Jos University Teaching Hospital, in particular the Nephrology Unit of the Pediatrics Department. We received the news with so much gladness because we’ve been vindicated,”_ Dr. Bupwatda said in an interview.

He described the lead consultant on the case, *Professor Echeke*, as _“a very thorough consultant, a Professor of Pediatrics and Nephrology”_ who showed commitment to saving the patient.

According to him, the patient was brought in with _“end-stage renal failure.”_ After investigations, the medical team recommended a kidney transplant and even wrote letters to solicit financial assistance for the family due to the high cost of the procedure.

“Unfortunately, the child passed on. No pediatrician would see a child in pain and neglect the child. It’s like your own child,”_ he said.

*Allegations of Oxygen Negligence Denied*

The suit alleged that JUTH staff were negligent for allegedly failing to properly fix oxygen while transferring the patient to the ICU.

Dr. Bupwatda dismissed the claim.

_“They said our nurses were negligent while transporting him, that oxygen was not available. That is not correct. We have an oxygen plant in JUTH. We also have transport cylinders that we use to move patients. But the case was already a critical one. We are not God. We try our best within the limited resources we have,”_ he stated.

He added that JUTH is a referral center receiving patients from Plateau, Benue, Taraba, Nasarawa and other states, and that this often puts pressure on staff and facilities.

_“Sometimes people take cases to other places until they are so bad, then they bring them to JUTH as the last resort. By the time they come, the case is already very bad,”_ he said.

*On Human Error and Accountability*

When asked if there are cases of human error, the CMD said such incidents are _“minimal.”_

_“If such happens, we have an internal mechanism. We have a high-powered standing committee on professional negligence and ethics in conduct. Nobody wants to appear before that committee. They are no-nonsense people and there are sanctions that serve as deterrent,”_ he said.

He urged members of the public with complaints to put them in writing for investigation.