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Nigerian doctors are mourning yet another avoidable tragedy following the death of Dr. Oluwafemi Rotifa, a young resident at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, RSUTH, who reportedly collapsed and died after a gruelling 72-hour call duty
Information gathered by SOJ WORLDWIDE CORRESPONDENT revealed that the late doctor, fondly called Femoski by colleagues, was a former President of the Port Harcourt University Medical Students’ Association (PUMSA) and was registered with the UK’s General Medical Council, awaiting placement abroad
According to eyewitness accounts, Rotifa had been on continuous call duty for three days in the Emergency Room before retreating to the call room to rest.
It was there that he slumped and later died, despite efforts to resuscitate him in the Intensive Care Unit.
Confirming the development, the President of the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors, NARD, Dr. Tope Osundara, described the incident as both preventable and a damning reflection of Nigeria’s collapsing health system.
“What happened is that he was on call in the Emergency Room. Afterward, he went to the call room to rest, and it was there that he died. Unfortunately, he was the only one attending to the patient.
“The overuse of manpower strained his health and led to this painful death. It was a death on duty,” Osundara lamented.
He called on government to urgently support the family of the deceased and overhaul the system that continues to push doctors to exhaustion.
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“The burnout among medical doctors, especially resident doctors who are manning most of the teaching hospitals, is becoming very worrisome.
“We have cried out repeatedly. The few doctors left in this country are overworked, underpaid and poorly motivated.
“Government must look into remuneration and ensure immediate replacement of doctors who resign or emigrate. Otherwise, this cycle of needless deaths will continue,” he added.
He said Nigeria’s health sector has in recent years been hit by a massive brain drain, with thousands of doctors leaving for better opportunities abroad, adding that those who remain are stretched thin, often forced to cover double or triple shifts without rest.
Osundara warned that the consequences extend beyond doctors themselves.
“We are not asking for these reforms just for our own welfare, but for the patients. When a doctor is mentally, physically and emotionally broken, he cannot render quality care.
“Patients end up spending unnecessary hours in hospitals, waiting for one doctor to attend to thousands. It is the patients who ultimately suffer the most,” he said.
He stressed the need for government at all levels to urgently address staff shortages, improve welfare packages and enforce humane work schedules for doctors.
He cited that while WHO ration for patient to doctor’s ration is put at 1 doctor to 600, in Nigeria it remains 1 doctor to 10,000 patients.
Osundara said, there was need for government to implement the existing replacement policy that stipulates one on one replacement of doctors.
Adding its voice, the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, described the incident as heartbreaking and unacceptable.
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Speaking with newsmen, the NMA Vice President, Mr Benjamin Olowojebutu said:
“It is extremely sad to lose our doctors in the prime of their work, dying in the line of duty. It is extremely frustrating that the workload on the few doctors left in this country has now taken a big blow.”
He said right now the working hours and the workload is enormous for the few doctors left in the country.
“NMA will continue to engage relevant stakeholders on the working hours of doctors. Right now, the working hours and workload are enormous for the few doctors remaining.
“Adequate welfare in terms of salaries, allowances, and especially a comprehensive health insurance scheme for every doctor working and living in this country must be prioritised.
“We commiserate with the family of our colleague and his friends. May his gentle soul rest in peace. This death must count for some massive improvement in the health sector.”
Meanwhile, since the news of the death of Dr Rotofa, there have been out pouring of tributes across social media, with colleagues and friends describing him as a passionate young doctor whose life was cut short by a system he served with dedication.
Those closed to him described him as diligent, selfless and deeply committed to his patients.
While some doctors who spoke to described his death as shameful queried why young doctors should be dying in 2025 from overwork.
They insisted that If this continues, the health system will keep losing both patients and doctors, add ING that reform cannot wait any longer.
For instance, Dr. Ahmed Isaiah, a medical doctor in Nasarawa State, collapsed during surgery on 24 December 2022 while battling what initially seemed like ordinary fever. He was rushed to the National Hospital, Abuja, but passed away on 31 December.
Also, on 1 August 2023, Dr. Diaso, a house officer at Lagos Island General Hospital, died when a malfunctioning elevator plummeted from the 10th floor. She was trapped for nearly 40 minutes before being retrieved. Heartbreakingly, no blood was available for transfusion at the hospital.
Another doctor, Dr. Okeoghene Edigba, a Senior Registrar in the Department of Surgery at University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), collapsed in the on-call room after performing four back-to-back operations. Despite resuscitation efforts, he did not survive. These are just but few of the doctors who have died on duty.
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