Nurse Strangled at Her Post as Child Patient Dies: Colleagues Strike in Ogun State

A night shift on a children’s ward ended in violence for one Nigerian nurse, and now her colleagues have walked off the job.

Nurses at the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH) in Sagamu, Ogun State, have staged a protest and declared an immediate strike after a colleague, identified as Nurse Adeeko, was allegedly assaulted by a relative of a child who had just died. Participants said the nurses planned to resume work on Monday.

A family’s grief, then an attack

The child, reportedly diagnosed with end-stage neuroblastoma, was critically ill. According to the report, the nursing team had told the attending medical team that the child’s condition was worsening and allegedly asked for a referral to another hospital for further management. The referral was reportedly not carried out before the child died.

The child’s relatives were also alleged to have threatened to cause trouble if anything happened to the patient. After the death, one of them allegedly turned violent and attacked Adeeko as she worked.

Two emergencies at once

The incident report states that two other patients suffered cardiac arrest around the same time, leaving the two nurses on duty attending to separate emergencies. While they fought to save those patients, the relative allegedly slapped and strangled Adeeko repeatedly, causing her nose to bleed. She reportedly lost consciousness briefly and was taken to the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department.

Help was far away

A colleague who witnessed the attack reportedly ran to find hospital security, but alleged the response was not immediate. According to a source, she was directed to security personnel at the main gate, some distance from the Children’s Ward. The supervisor on duty was eventually contacted, and police were reportedly called in.

The deceased child’s relatives allegedly returned to the ward at about 1:25 a.m. and kept threatening nursing staff.

In a message circulated among colleagues, Adeeko said she was worried about having no immediate photographic evidence of her injuries. “So I don’t really have evidence now. The only witness is one nurse, Nurse Lasis, the treasurer for NANNM,” she reportedly said.

A protest led by the young

Younger nurses, including members of Generation Z, reportedly led the protest before other colleagues joined. They are demanding:

• A thorough, impartial investigation into the assault and the threats made against health workers

• An investigation into the alleged failure of security staff to respond promptly

• Adequate security coverage during night shifts

• Medical and psychological support for Adeeko

• A review of staffing arrangements

• An examination of the clinical concerns allegedly raised before the child’s death

• Written assurances from hospital management that effective preventive measures will be introduced

The protesters said that while the death of a critically ill child can devastate a family, it does not justify violence against healthcare workers. “No nurse should have to choose between responding to a medical emergency and protecting herself from violence,” the nurses reportedly said in their statement.

Pressure to go back to work?

Sources also alleged that nursing leaders were being pressured to persuade the protesters to return to duty rather than address their grievances. One source claimed the hospital’s Chief Medical Director instructed nursing leaders to urge the nurses to resume work. The available information did not independently establish these allegations about management’s response.

Not the first incident this week

The protest comes days after health workers at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Abeokuta, reportedly began a warning strike over the alleged assault of colleagues by a patient’s relative. Together, the two incidents have heightened calls for better security and accountability in healthcare facilities across the state.

Attacks on medical staff can disrupt hospital operations, undermine morale and affect essential services. Healthcare workers and professional bodies have repeatedly stressed that grievances should be resolved without violence, and the incidents have highlighted the need for hospitals to have clear procedures for handling aggrieved patients and relatives, especially during emergencies and night shifts.

The assault has also renewed attention to longstanding allegations of inadequate nursing personnel, excessive workloads and unsafe working conditions at OOUTH, and raised questions about the adequacy of security at the affected hospitals.