By Patrick Okoli
Mrs Ujuka Ifediba, a 39-year old woman who was involved in a container lorry accident in 2017, has appealed to kindhearted individuals and organizations to assist her financially and enable her to return to normal life again.
Ifediba said she was lucky to escape alive when a container fell off the body of the truck and landed on her waist and lower part of her body at Agric Bus stop at the Mile Two Badagry Expressway, Lagos.
According to her, the incident occurred on September 6, 2017. She recounted how a man who was beside her died instantly under the container, noting that even in her pains, the trauma of the accident had not left her.
Ifediba said she was receiving treatment at a traditional bone setting home before she was moved to Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital (COOUTH) last year.
She said she had been a burden to her husband and widowed mother as family members had spent a lot of money on her predicament.
‘I have undergone a number of surgeries for treatment of the wound but the actual corrective surgery for the fractures is yet to be done.
I have not received medical attention in the hospital for more than two months due to my inability to pay the N1.6 million bill for the corrective surgery,’ she lamented.
A medical report from COOUTH signed by Dr Ifeanyi Ezeobi, a Consultant Orthopedic Surgeon, said Ujuka was admitted in the hospital on May 28, 2018, and had been under a combined team of orthopedic and plastic surgeons.
‘She was a victim of road traffic accident and sustained multiple fractures to the pelvis and lower limbs. Initial management was by traditional bone setters in Lagos, leading to pressure sores at the gluteal and back of the knees and hips with stiffness of the joint.
‘She has undergone a series of surgical interventions to heal the pressure sores while still awaiting definitive treatment of the fractures which will come when the pressure ulcers are healed.
‘The estimated cost of the definitive treatment for the fractures is put at N1.6 million. This includes the cost of surgeries, additional hospital stay and rehabilitation,’ the report stated.
Ujuka who is presently lying helpless at the deserted female surgical ward with her mother on her bed side, can be contacted through this phone number 081 616 758 02.
She hails from Umuoji, Idemili North and is married to Chibuike Ifediba, from Ogwu-Ikpele, Ogbaru Council Area, both in Anambra.
Fides reports that Resident and Consultant doctor have embarked on an indefinite strike over issues with the Anambra Government, leading to the hospital being almost deserted.
