ENUGU, NIGERIA — The management of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku-Ozalla, Enugu, has issued a three-week ultimatum to depositors of corpses at its mortuary to evacuate them, warning that the affected bodies have remained unclaimed for extended periods.
According to a release from the Public Relations Office of the teaching hospital, a number of deceased bodies deposited in the hospital mortuary have remained unclaimed beyond their stipulated duration. The Department of Morbid Anatomy, UNTH Ituku-Ozalla, in the release, warned against non-compliance with the directive.
According to the list obtained from the hospital, a total of 126 corpses are affected. The hospital said the ultimatum was necessary to decongest the mortuary and to ensure that the facility continues to function effectively. It urged families and depositors of the affected corpses to come forward and make arrangements for their evacuation within the stipulated period.
“The management of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku-Ozalla, wishes to inform the general public that a number of deceased bodies deposited in the hospital mortuary have remained unclaimed for extended periods. Consequently, depositors of the affected corpses are hereby given three weeks from the date of this notice to evacuate them,” the release stated.
The hospital warned that it would take necessary action in line with the law if the affected corpses are not evacuated within the stipulated timeframe. It did not specify what action would be taken, but sources within the hospital indicated that the management had received approval to dispose of unclaimed corpses in line with established protocols.
This is not the first time the teaching hospital has issued such a notice. In the past, UNTH had decried the accumulation of unclaimed corpses at its mortuary, a situation that hospital officials said placed a strain on the facility’s resources and created health and safety concerns. The hospital has repeatedly urged families to claim the bodies of their deceased relatives, noting that the mortuary is not a permanent resting place.
In a related development, the management of the State University of Medical and Allied Sciences, Igbano, Enugu State, has been urged to introduce eye care services in the hospital. Some residents, especially the elderly, who spoke with journalists, said the call became necessary in view of the high cost of eye treatment in the Enugu North zone of the state where the teaching hospital is situated.
Thomas Ugwu, a retiree, said the teaching hospital was saving residents a lot with its affordable services, but noted that the eye treatment unit was not fully operational. “Last year, some experts conducted free eye treatment, including surgery, which some of us benefitted from. I want the programme to return again, or at best, let the eye treatment centre of the hospital become more functional. It will save many of us having eye problems,” he said.
Sylvester Eze, a resident of Ovoko in Igboeze South Local Government Area, said he did not hear about the last free medical services conducted at SUMAS last year, but noted that his friend had free eye surgery. He urged the management to establish an ophthalmology unit at the hospital, stressing that most elderly people have eye problems that require regular attention and that many cannot afford private eye hospitals.
The management of SUMAS has not yet responded to the call, but sources within the institution indicated that plans were underway to expand the hospital’s specialist services, including eye care. For now, residents of Enugu North are hopeful that their calls for improved eye care services will be heeded, while families of the deceased at UNTH are urged to evacuate the affected corpses within the three-week ultimatum.
