…Says 21-year-old received N93,950 emergency care free
By Kingsley Samuel
Lagos State Government has clarified the circumstances surrounding a patient experience incident at Randle General Hospital, saying a 21-year-old woman at the centre of a social media controversy received emergency medical care worth N93,950 at no cost to her family.
The state government, through the Ministry of Health, said it had concluded its investigation into the incident reported on social media on August 31, 2026, by the patient’s mother, Mrs Oshodi.
According to the ministry, the patient, Alimat Oshodi, presented at the Mother and Child Centre of Randle General Hospital on August 4 as an emergency case requiring immediate medical intervention.
The Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, said the patient received lifesaving emergency care under the Comprehensive Emergency Obstetrics and Newborn Care, CEmONC, programme, free of charge.
He said the initial value of the emergency treatment provided was N75,950 and that the patient was discharged on August 11.
The commissioner said: “The investigation established that the patient, Alimat Oshodi, is indeed 21 years old and not 13 as indicated by her mother.
“She presented at the hospital’s Mother and Child Centre on August 4, 2026, as an emergency case requiring immediate medical intervention.
“She received lifesaving emergency care under the CEmONC programme at no cost to her family and was discharged on August 11, 2026.”
Abayomi explained that following her discharge, Oshodi returned to the hospital on August 27 for follow-up care and further investigations.
He said because of her financial difficulties, the hospital’s Social Welfare Unit intervened by providing N5,000 on August 28 and another N13,000 on August 31 to support the subsequent investigations.
He added that the patient personally contributed N10,000 towards the subsequent care, while government assistance to her had risen to N93,950.
According to him, the controversy over a Point of Sale, POS, transaction arose after the patient requested a refund of the N13,000 already paid on her behalf by the Hospital Welfare Fund.
He said the patient explained that an NGO had subsequently offered to pay for the investigations.
The commissioner said the patient was informed that Social Welfare payments could not be refunded at the Paypoint because of established financial procedures.
“The subsequent discussion concerning a POS transaction arose after the patient sought a refund of the N13,000 already paid on her behalf by the Hospital Welfare Fund, stating that an NGO was now willing to cover the cost.
“She was informed that Social Welfare payments could not be refunded at the Paypoint in accordance with established procedure,” he said.
The commissioner said the investigation also established that Lagos State’s social health protection mechanisms were applied in the case to ensure that financial constraints did not prevent the patient from accessing necessary medical care.
He listed the mechanisms to include Ilera Eko, the state’s social health insurance programme; hospital-based Social Welfare support; and the CEmONC programme.
Abayomi explained that Ilera Eko is provided free to indigent patients under the equity fund, while other members of the public can access it at subsidised rates.
He said hospital-based Social Welfare support provides funds set aside by General Hospitals to assist patients who require emergency care but are unable to afford it.
The commissioner added that CEmONC provides emergency obstetric and newborn care for eligible vulnerable patients through the National Health Insurance Authority, NHIA.
He said the state government was also improving payment processes across public hospitals through the rollout of the Smart Health Information Platform, SHIP.
“We are constantly improving efficient payment processes in all our public hospitals through the rollout of the Smart Health Information Platform, SHIP, and conducting regular audits of fee collection practices across public health facilities,” Abayomi said.
The commissioner said the investigation had established the facts surrounding the incident and demonstrated that the state’s social health protection mechanisms were functioning.
“This investigation has established the facts surrounding the incident and confirms that the State’s social health protection mechanisms work seamlessly and, in this case, provide timely support at no cost to the patient when she required emergency care to the tune of N93,950,” he said.
He said the findings were contrary to the impression created by the social media post that the Lagos State Ministry of Health and the government hospital were attempting to delay access to care or extort money from a vulnerable patient.
“This is contrary to the message implied in the social media post, that a Lagos State Ministry of Health Government General Hospital was trying to delay access to care and extort funds from a vulnerable patient,” Abayomi said.
