Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has accused a Lagos hospital of attempting to obstruct the investigation into her son's death.
Nkanu Nnamdi died at the age of 21 months on January 7 at the Euracare multi-specialty hospital , where he had been taken for diagnostic tests. He had notably undergone an MRI in preparation for his evacuation to the United States scheduled for the following day for specialized care.
Ms. Adichie, who lives in the United States but was in Nigeria for the Christmas holidays, posted on her Instagram page on Saturday a letter she addressed to the hospital, dated April 16.
This was his first public comment since the death.
She wrote: " Nkanu's disappearance, so cruel, so unjust, so negligent, has caused unspeakable pain ." The coroner's inquest was scheduled to begin on April 14, she wrote on Saturday. "Instead, Euracare has decided to deploy delaying tactics," she added.
It was Euracare that filed the initial request for an investigation in January, stating that our son's death was unexpected and that an inquiry was in their interest due to "rumors of negligence." " Yet they dragged their feet, muddied the waters, and obfuscated the situation. If this is how Euracare handles a crisis, it's no wonder they mismanaged the care of our precious son." AFP contacted Euracare for comment.
The novelist indicates in her letter that the medical director told her that the anesthesiologist had administered "too much propofol" to her son to put him to sleep during the MRI, which had caused a "respiratory and cardiac arrest".
She stated that the hospital issued a death certificate claiming her son died of meningitis. The hospital has previously denied any wrongdoing.
The boy's death has reignited debates about the poor state of Nigeria's healthcare system.
