Lunatics at Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, attack their Doctors

 

Doctors
at the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, have cried out over
recurrent attacks from mentally challenged patients at the hospital.

The psychiatrists, who are on strike to
protest issues of insecurity at the federal hospital, told our
correspondent that many of their colleagues had suffered severe injuries
due to violent attacks from their patients.

The President, Association of Resident
Doctors of the hospital, Dr. Jeje Oyetayo, said that doctors had to
embark on an indefinite strike after the last attack on two female
doctors at the outpatient unit of the hospital in June.

She said, “Patients have attacked
doctors severally at the hospital and we don’t have trained security
personnel to address this. But the last one was on the 5th of June, two
female doctors were attacked such that consultants had to come and save
them.

“The patient took an iron rod and
started running around with it and there were no security officials.
Patients get violent occasionally but the norm is that there should be
trained personnel that can disarm them.

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“I
mean they should hold their hands and subdue them. But if there are no
trained security personnel, the patient and the doctor can be injured in
the process of trying to douse the violent situation and it may
escalate.”

Oyetayo called on the Federal Government
and authorities at the hospital to quickly review the security
logistics with a view of protecting the lives of health workers while
delivering their duties at the hospital.

She said, “There are no escape routes
for health workers in case of an emergency such as when we have an
aggressive patient which could lead to harm to doctors, patients and
relatives.

“There is no functioning alarm system to
alert security officials for help in case of an emergency and even the
consultants have refused to run clinics due to the security challenges.

“The Federal Ministry of Health needs to
step in to avoid loss of lives as well as bodily harm to health workers
as well as patients and their relatives,”

Another resident doctor at the hospital
who spoke on condition of anonymity on Wednesday also complained that
they had to consult for their patients in an unconducive environment, a
situation, he said could encourage attacks from patients.

He said, “The chairs and tables in the
consulting rooms are rickety. Patients have to stand over doctors and we
know the danger of a psychiatric patient towering over anyone.

“Many times, we have six doctors
consulting for patients in a room structured for just one doctor and the
patient. Many terrible things happen under these circumstances.”

A PUNCH reporter who went round the hospital on Wednesday observed that skeletal services were being offered.

The emergency and outpatient units which used to be filled with patients were almost empty as very few personnel were on ground.

The Medical Director of the hospital,
Dr. Rahman Lawal, admitted that the hospital was presently experiencing a
shortage of security personnel due to lapses in logistics.

Lawal, however, said that the attack on
the doctors in June was due the fact that health workers who should have
catered to patients at the emergency unit were on strike.

He said, “ We have been outsourcing
security needs for some time now and we are having problems with the
payment of our outsourced staff including security personnel. Some leave
without telling us they are going and it takes time to replace them.”