Ailing UNIPORT student d*es after being denied bed space in LUTH

It was gathered that the deceased was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism, after which she developed a swollen heart.

Deborah Doofan, an ailing student of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), has passed away.

She died outside the Emergency Ward of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Idi-Araba, in the Surulere area of the state, due to a lack of bed space to admit her into a ward in the hospital for prompt treatment.

Doofan, a first-year student of Banking and Finance at UNIPORT, was studying in school when she suffered a crisis and was rushed to the UNIPORT Teaching Hospital.

While she was receiving treatment in the hospital, the medical staff discovered that she had a swollen heart and thereafter referred her to LUTH to see specialists for her condition.

“So, she left Port Harcourt and came to Lagos on December 24, 2022. We called LUTH to know if their specialists were on the ground but we were told that the machine that will be used for the hyperthyroidism treatment was not working.

“The LUTH referred her to the University College Hospital, Ibadan. When we got there, a doctor said she would go through lots of treatments to bring the swollen heart down because her heart was beating very fast.

“She needed to see specialists including an endocrinologist, neurologist, and cardiologist, among others, but the doctor said UCH has the machine for the treatment but the specialists were not on the ground and that she needed to see a cardiologist to certify that her heart was in a good position for them to put her on a machine for the treatment,” her elder brother, Prince stated, as he discussed his late sister’s health condition.

Prince revealed that Doofan was given an appointment to resume her treatment on Monday (today).

According to him, the UNIPORT student was preparing to resume the treatment when she suffered a crisis and was rushed to the Epe General Hospital from where she was referred to the LUTH.

Prince said his sibling, however, died at the front of the emergency ward while he was looking for a bench or table to place her on.