The authorities of the University of Ibadan on Wednesday, 13 May, 2015 have released a detailed account of how a student of the institution, Mayowa Alaran, died Thursday, .
Prof. Isaac Adewole, the vice chancellor of the university gave a preliminary report from the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of the student.
Adewole revealed that the deceased student slumped while watching a football game and contrary to the student’s reports, died even before he was conveyed to the university health centre. He said that the student’s death was not due to negligence or inefficiency of the university’s Jaja clinic as alleged.
Prof. Adewole said: “He carried out his normal activities earlier on Wednesday, May 6, 2015. Very early in the day, he attended the Gymnastics practical with other students in his Department (7.00 – 9.00 a.m.). He later went to attend the Induction Programme organized for fresh students in his department. He attempted to participate in a football match between his Department of Health Education and Human Kinetics and the Department of Library and Archival Studies (LARIS) in the afternoon, but could not due to the fact that he did not train with his department’s team.
“He thereafter returned to the faculty to attend a GES class that held between 4.00 – 6.00p.m. It was from here that he later returned to Independence Hall to watch a football match between Barcelona and Bayern Munich relayed in the Junior Common Room, JCR. The match started at 7.45 pm that evening.
“A generator was used to supply electricity to the JCR due to power outage that evening. The generator was placed about 50 meters away from the JCR. The student sat in the front row and was facing a non-rotating standing fan in the JCR. At about 30 minutes into the football match, a student sitting next to him observed that he had slumped and was motionless. The concerned student promptly carried him out of the JCR for resuscitation with the assistance of some medical students around who gave him mouth-to-moresuscitation.
“The concerned student made a call to the University Health Centre requesting for an ambulance. After waiting for about 8 -10 minutes, the concerned student arranged for a private vehicle to convey the student to the University Health Centre.
“On the way, at Lander roundabout, the vehicle conveying the student met the ambulance which was sent to bring him by the Nurse-on-duty in response to the call.
“It should be noted that though, there was only one ambulance on duty that night, the case of the student was promptly attended to with appropriate priority. Two patients (staff dependants – one with a ruptured appendicitis and the other with femoral fracture) who were being taken to a private hospital – Molly Hospital, in the same ambulance, were disembarked to allow the ambulance pick the student from Independence Hall.
“At the time of moving the student from the vehicle into the University Health Centre, he showed no vital signs.
“The Nurse-on-duty promptly attended to the student and observed that vital signs were absent and continued resuscitation efforts.
“The Doctor-on-call promptly joined in the resuscitation efforts despite the absence of vital signs and later certified the student dead. This was also affirmed by the colleagues who soon joined in response to his invitation.
“After the certification of the death and in order to manage the growing tension and anxiety among the students, they were asked to go back to his room and look for any available information they could gather. This was a diversionary ploy to reduce the already growing population of students around the clinic, and not to break the news already communicated directly to the sympathizing students.”
