A grieving Nigerian woman has shared a harrowing account of how her uncle died after being unable to access urgent medical care, blaming systemic failures in the healthcare sector and an ongoing nationwide industrial action for his death.
In an emotional post on X, formerly Twitter, the woman described how her uncle, who had only been ill for two days, required immediate dialysis treatment but could not receive it, ultimately dying in front of his family.
According to her account, the ordeal began on Friday, January 23, 2026, when she received a distressing call from her mother. She was told that her uncle’s condition was deteriorating rapidly despite receiving medical attention. Alarmed and fearful, she immediately booked the earliest available vehicle and travelled to Makurdi, departing at 1:00 p.m. and arriving around 6:00 p.m.
Upon reaching the hospital, she said something felt wrong immediately. She joined doctors and nurses in attempting to help her uncle, assisting where she could. Cannulas were inserted, several drips administered, and a catheter placed after she discovered her uncle had stopped passing urine. However, blood, not urine, emerged, leaving the family terrified and confused.
Doctors later informed the family that he had developed an acute kidney infection requiring urgent dialysis. The family contacted dialysis centres across Makurdi, but none were operational due to a nationwide strike by healthcare workers. They also reached out to the road safety office for an ambulance to transfer him to hospitals in Jos or Abuja, but no assistance arrived. At exactly 10:10 p.m., her uncle passed away in front of his family.
The woman described her uncle as a gallant officer of the law, gentle and kind, who had dedicated more than 20 years to public service. She recalled personal moments with him, including how he would tease her about boyfriends, now memories tinged with sorrow. She said the family remains deeply traumatized, struggling to process the sudden loss, with some relatives refusing to accept the reality.
“This is life as a Nigerian,” she wrote, expressing frustration with what she described as a broken healthcare system and the inability of public institutions to provide basic emergency care. She questioned whether her family would ever recover from the tragedy.
The incident in Makurdi underscores ongoing concerns about the accessibility and reliability of healthcare in Nigeria, particularly during nationwide strikes and industrial disputes. Health sector strikes, which have affected both public and private facilities, have left patients in critical condition without treatment for days, sometimes resulting in preventable deaths.
Civil society organizations and human rights activists have repeatedly warned that prolonged industrial action without adequate contingency planning endangers lives, particularly in cases requiring emergency care such as dialysis, surgery, and intensive care. The tragedy in Makurdi has reignited calls for urgent reforms to ensure essential health services remain available even during labour disputes.
As Nigeria continues to grapple with rising costs of healthcare, staff shortages, and strike actions, families like that of the deceased officer are left to bear the human cost of systemic failures. The heartbreaking story from Makurdi has sparked widespread discussion on social media, highlighting the urgent need for action to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
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