Patients Allege Forced Feeding, Poor Conditions at University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital

Patients seeking medical services at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPHTH) in Rivers State have made shocking allegations against the hospital, claiming they were forced to purchase food and endured poor conditions, including power outages, dirty toilets, and bad water.

The allegations were made by several patients, including Baridueh Badon, who took to social media to express his dissatisfaction with the hospital’s services.

Badon claimed that his mother was forced to pay N2,000 per day for food, which he described as being of poor quality.

Narrating the ordeal, he stressed, “The first shock was compulsory feeding. Every patient was forced to eat hospital food. You can’t opt out of it. This food is worse than what people in prison eat. The cost was N2,000 per day. I could not understand why a hospital would force patients to eat their food.”

Another patient, Maureen Ikeaguchi, corroborated Badon’s claims, stating that she was handed a food bill of N7,000 despite not eating the hospital’s food. Ikeaguchi also complained about the hospital’s water and toilet facilities, which she described as dirty and inadequate.

“I was treated well, even when I was in emergency. There was a swift response from them to take care of me. They didn’t even ask us for money for surgery. They had to take care of me first,” she noted.

She said, “On the day we were about to leave the hospital, they gave me a bill of N7,000. They said it was for my feeding for the seven days I spent. I never ate their food. We argued but I ended up paying that money. That is one of the unnecessary bills I paid. Patients shouldn’t be forced.”

However, the hospital’s acting Public Relations Officer, Elabha Meni, denied all the allegations, stating that they were not correct.

Meni claimed that the hospital did not experience power outages and that the emergency areas never shut down.

Regarding the food charges, Meni justified the hospital’s policy, stating that the food provided was part of the treatment for patients with certain conditions, such as diabetes.

Meni also stated that the hospital would investigate any allegations of wrongdoing and take necessary action.

“Power doesn’t disrupt our services in any way. How can power disrupt surgical procedures when operations are going on? Most times, people base their reports on social media, which isn’t correct,” Meni said.

Justifying the food charges by the hospital, Meni added, “There is inpatient feeding for every patient admitted for diabetes, and the food we give them goes with the treatment. As for the cost, I don’t know what it is. Every hospital has its policies. That is our policy, and they will have to follow it. It is for treatment, and people have to eat certain things.

“If anybody is found wanting on these allegations, through an investigation by the hospital, a decision will be taken because we deal with life. Life can’t be bought, and the management values life.”

The allegations made by the patients have raised concerns about the quality of care provided by the hospital and the need for greater transparency and accountability in the healthcare sector.

The hospital’s denial of the allegations has also sparked a debate about the credibility of the hospital’s management and the need for independent investigations into the allegations.

 

Read also: REVEALED: How Dr Uyi Iluobe Killed By Fake Patient in Delta