Renowned writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has released a statement following the death of her 21-month-old son, Nkanu, whom she says died as a result of medical negligence in Lagos.

According to her account, the family was in Lagos for Christmas when Nkanu developed what initially seemed like a simple cold but quickly worsened into a serious infection. He was admitted to Atlantis Hospital and was scheduled to be flown to the United States the following day, January 7, accompanied by a medical team. Specialists at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore were already prepared to receive him and had requested an MRI and a lumbar puncture. The Nigerian medical team also planned to insert a central line in preparation for the journey.

For these procedures, Atlantis Hospital referred the family to Euracare Hospital. On the morning of January 6, Nkanu was taken there and was to be sedated so he would remain still during the MRI and the central line insertion.

While waiting outside the operating area, Adichie noticed sudden urgency among the medical staff and sensed that something had gone wrong. She was later informed that Nkanu had been given an excessive dose of the sedative propofol, became unresponsive, and had to be resuscitated. He was placed on a ventilator and transferred to intensive care. Complications followed, and within hours, he passed away.

The family later learned that after the sedative was administered, Nkanu was not properly monitored. They allege that standard safety protocols were ignored and that critical care was handled in a dangerously casual manner.

Adichie describes the anesthesiologist involved as criminally negligent and says no parent should ever have to endure such a loss, especially under circumstances that could have been prevented. She also revealed that there had been previous cases in which the same doctor had allegedly overdosed children, raising serious questions about why he was still allowed to practice.

“We brought in a sick but stable child for routine procedures, with plans for him to travel for advanced care the next day,” she wrote. “Instead, we left without our son. This must never happen to another child.”

king story.

Renowned writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has released a statement following the death of her 21-month-old son, Nkanu, whom she says died as a result of medical negligence in Lagos.

According to her account, the family was in Lagos for Christmas when Nkanu developed what initially seemed like a simple cold but quickly worsened into a serious infection. He was admitted to Atlantis Hospital and was scheduled to be flown to the United States the following day, January 7, accompanied by a medical team. Specialists at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore were already prepared to receive him and had requested an MRI and a lumbar puncture. The Nigerian medical team also planned to insert a central line in preparation for the journey.

For these procedures, Atlantis Hospital referred the family to Euracare Hospital. On the morning of January 6, Nkanu was taken there and was to be sedated so he would remain still during the MRI and the central line insertion.

While waiting outside the operating area, Adichie noticed sudden urgency among the medical staff and sensed that something had gone wrong. She was later informed that Nkanu had been given an excessive dose of the sedative propofol, became unresponsive, and had to be resuscitated. He was placed on a ventilator and transferred to intensive care. Complications followed, and within hours, he passed away.

The family later learned that after the sedative was administered, Nkanu was not properly monitored. They allege that standard safety protocols were ignored and that critical care was handled in a dangerously casual manner.

Adichie describes the anesthesiologist involved as criminally negligent and says no parent should ever have to endure such a loss, especially under circumstances that could have been prevented. She also revealed that there had been previous cases in which the same doctor had allegedly overdosed children, raising serious questions about why he was still allowed to practice.

“We brought in a sick but stable child for routine procedures, with plans for him to travel for advanced care the next day,” she wrote. “Instead, we left without our son. This must never happen to another child.”