Family, Lagos hospital clash over patient’s withheld remains, ICU charges

By Chioma Obinna

For four agonising days, the Olatunbosun family clung to hope as their 68-year-old sister, Mrs. Yewande Olatunbosun, battled for her life inside what they were told was an Intensive Care Unit at Awesome Grace Hospital, a private medical facility along the Ishaga area of Lagos.
But when hope ran out and Yewande drew her final breath, a new and unimaginable nightmare began: the hospital refused to release her body over failure of the family to pay an outstanding bill of N7,126,500.
The issue, it turned out is that the family cannot afford to pay. “We just want to bury our sister,” her heartbroken brother, Dr. Ayodele Ogunko, a Cardiologist/Consultant Physician, said in an emotional appeal to the hospital management.
““Is that too much to ask? She has suffered enough. Let her rest.”
Ayodele said they suspected that Yewande, a retired nurse and widow with two children, had struggled with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which worsened following a COVID-19 infection.
Her family initially sought help at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), hoping for the critical care she desperately needed.
But LUTH, one of Nigeria’s top tertiary hospitals, had no working ventilator available.
“They had six ICU beds, but only five were equipped. The sixth bed had no ventilator,” Ayodele recounted.
“The hospital couldn’t admit her because they lacked the equipment to keep her alive.”
That moment when a National referral hospital could not offer life-saving treatment marked the beginning of a tragedy rooted not just in illness, but in the deep failures of Nigeria’s healthcare system.
With nowhere else to turn, the family took Yewande to Awesome Grace Hospital, which is on the same axis as LUTH.
According to Ayodele, the hospital claimed to offer intensive care but what they found, however, was far from any functional ICU.
“She was admitted into a room with a faulty CPAP machine, no ECG, no crash cart, and no trained ICU nurses. It was a ward with an air conditioner and a beeping monitor.”
He said the hospital charged the family N500,000 per day, excluding medications and investigations. In just a few days, the bill rose to over N10,001,500. Despite the mounting costs, the facility allegedly lacked the barest standards of emergency critical care.
A few days later, Ayodele said he decided to move his sister to another hospital, but the management of the hospital refused.
“We were not arguing about money; we offered to pay more, to move her to a hospital with proper equipment. We wanted a payment plan since we cannot spend all we have, knowing we will also pay some deposit money at the new hospital we were leaving for. They refused. Even when their ventilator failed, they wouldn’t let us take her out.”
The only ventilator in the ward reportedly broke down while in use. During the period it took to attempt repairs, late Yewande went into hypoxia and died.
From the hospital bill made available to Vanguard, the total bill was N10,001,500. Out of which, the family has paid N1,245,000. Also, from the outstanding balance of N8,756,500, the hospital gave a discount of N1,630,000, bringing down the outstanding bill to N7,126,500. Sadly, the family could still not afford to pay.
However, Ayodele is insisting that out of the N7,126,500 being claimed as the outstanding balance, , the family can only pay N3 million on the spot while a balance of N1 million be spread over one one-year moratorium. He said already the hospital has turned his request down, insisting on the full payment of N10 million. He said the family has emphatically stated that they cannot pay more than N4million.
When the family tried to claim her body, Ayodele Ogunko told Vanguard that Awesome Grace Hospital insisted they must pay at least 80 percent of the bill first.
“They are holding her corpse like a bargaining chip,” he said.
He said he even sent a lawyer to the hospital but letters from lawyers were ignored. The family says they feel powerless, devastated, and betrayed by every institution that should protect citizens in moments like this.
“She is not a piece of property. She was not a kidnap victim to be withheld until ransom is paid. She was our sister. She deserves dignity in death,” her brother said through tears.

Hospital denies wrongdoing, threatens legal action
Responding to the allegations, management of Awesome Grace Hospital denied any wrongdoing and warned against what it described as attempts to damage its reputation in the press and on social media.
The Administration Officer, Mrs. Morgan, while responding to Vanguard for the hospital, said they would “not take it lightly” if the facility’s name was “painted in bad light” and threatened to sue Dr. Ayodele.
“If he gets out there to social media, I will not take it lightly. All bills will be paid. If he likes, he goes to the White House,” she said.
According to the hospital, the late Yewande was admitted on July 6, July, 2025, accompanied by her son, Adedoyin, and her brother, Dr. Ayodele Ogunko. She was placed in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on a ventilator after a deposit of N1 million was made.
Management claimed that no further payment was made during her 17-day stay until her death on July 22.
Morgan said the hospital’s ICU charges are based on deposits and actual drug usage, not a fixed daily rate, and that patients’ families are updated every three days on expenses.
“Even in other facilities, five days on a ventilator is N2.5 million. She was here for 17 days. I’m surprised he’s talking about this,” she said.
She added that when bills and investigations were outstanding, the hospital offered to refer the patient to a government facility, but claimed Ayodele refused to discuss payment, insisting instead on moving his sister immediately.
Management alleged he later came with police officers to the facility, an action they resisted.
Also reacting on behalf of the hospital, the administrator, Mr. Theophilus Isebufuna, said they have been in communication with the son of the deceased, Adedoyin, who had also visited the mortuary and that they are awaiting his return for negotiations.
“We are open to any sort of negotiation, but it should be considerable. Even by Monday or Tuesday, if we don’t see the son, we will reschedule a meeting just to ensure the bill is paid and they go away with the remains of the mother,” he said.
The hospital maintained it has records, CCTV footage, and written correspondence to back its account, stressing it has “no war” with the family but will defend its integrity if pushed.
“This is bigger than our family. What happened to my sister is happening every day across Nigeria. Patients are dying not because their illnesses are incurable, but because the system meant to save them is failing,” Ayodele lamented.
Ayodele Ogunko is not only demanding the release of his sister’s body, he is calling for a national reckoning. “This is about justice. Not just for Yewande, but for the millions who will face this same nightmare if nothing changes,” he said.
He called for strict regulation of private hospitals falsely claiming to have ICUs, transparent billing practices for emergency care, immediate government investment in critical care infrastructure, and legal protection for families being extorted or abused during emergencies.
“This country makes it hard to live and even harder to die with dignity. We are calling on government, the press, the people — don’t let this be another forgotten tragedy.”

NMA reacts
Reacting to the development, the Chairman of the Lagos State branch of the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, Dr. Babajide Saheed, said that whether it is right or wrong for a hospital to withhold the remains of a patient depends largely on the agreement reached with the family.
Saheed stressed that while hospitals have legitimate concerns about recovering funds spent on patient care, keeping a corpse indefinitely is not a solution.
According to him, “The most important thing is to investigate what agreement they had. If the hospital agreed with the family that a certain amount must be paid before the release of the body, then that is an understanding between both parties. However, you cannot hold on to a corpse indefinitely.”
He noted that while families often complain about high bills, hospitals also face challenges. Hospitals need to recover money used for drugs, consumables, and to pay their staff. If they keep losing money, they will simply close down. In many cases, patients or their families even sign undertakings to pay, but after the remains are released, they disappear without fulfilling the agreement,” he said.
Saheed added that proper communication is key in such situations.
He explained that hospitals should consistently update patients and their relatives on daily bills during treatment to avoid disputes at the end.
“It is a straightforward matter. If a hospital is updating you about your bills and you refuse to make payments, that is wrong. But if the hospital fails to update you and only presents a huge bill at the end, then the hospital is also at fault,” he stated.
The NMA chairman urged both hospitals and families to prioritise transparency and negotiation in resolving such matters. “It is a two-way thing. Families should make genuine efforts to pay, and hospitals must also be fair by keeping patients informed of accumulating costs,” he said.

The post Family, Lagos hospital clash over patient’s withheld remains, ICU charges appeared first on Vanguard News.