The family of 46-year-old Olatunde Joseph Ojelabi has accused the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) of medical negligence, alleging that delays in emergency medical intervention led to his death following a road traffic crash.
Ojelabi died at LASUTH on September 12, 2026, six days after sustaining severe head and facial injuries in an auto crash along Ijegun Road, Ikotun, Lagos.
Key allegations by the deceased’s family
The victim’s brother, Kolawole Ojelabi, detailed the events leading up to Olatunde’s death in a public statement, raising key concerns regarding emergency protocol and patient care:
Delayed Emergency Care: The family alleges Olatunde arrived at the LASUTH Medical Emergency Unit before 9:00 AM on September 6 but was kept outside the ward for over six hours due to a reported shortage of hospital beds.
Deterioration & Convulsions: Due to the alleged delay in treatment, Olatunde began convulsing and subsequently suffered cardiac arrest. It was only after this critical event that emergency resuscitation and a tracheostomy were performed to restore his airway.
Operational Concerns: The family claimed they were instructed to buy cleaning supplies (a bucket, towel, and detergent) to clean blood spillages from the floor and were personally sent to check for bed availability in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
Lack of Communication: Relatives stated they were required to pay for carers, tests, and medications without receiving adequate explanations regarding the medical treatment strategy until a senior consultant was directly approached.
Official response from LASUTH management
In a counter-statement, the management of LASUTH refuted claims that the patient was left unattended:
LASUTH clarified that Olatunde presented as a polytrauma patient with complex, multi-system injuries requiring immediate and specialized attention from multiple consultant surgical teams.
The hospital maintained that appropriate clinical interventions, intensive monitoring, and supportive care were administered continuously from the point of admission.
While denying abandonment, LASUTH management expressed condolences to the family and confirmed that an internal institutional review is underway to re-examine all aspects of the patient’s care, treatment progression, and clinical outcome.
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