Three years after doctor’s death, Lagos hospital’s elevator still not operational

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Three years after medical doctor Vwaere Diaso died in an elevator accident at the General Hospital, Odan, Lagos Island, the elevator is not yet operational, as rehabilitation work on the building continues.

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PREMIUM TIMES visited the facility on Wednesday and observed that construction work was still ongoing at the 10-storey House Officers’ Residence, where the fatal elevator accident occurred in August 2023.

The elevator has been fixed, but doctors living in the building cannot use it because the rehabilitation of the building is still ongoing.

The development comes as questions about the state of the facility and the replacement of the lift continue to surface on social media.

For example, an X user, @themmanuelfaith, recently asked whether the elevator that killed the doctor had been fixed. The post had attracted over 27,000 views.

The rehabilitation of the building was originally expected to have been completed by January 2025.

Missed deadline

PREMIUM TIMES’ 2024 investigation into Lagos’ oldest hospital revealed that the rehabilitation of the House Officers’ Residence was being handled by Julius Berger and was expected to take 36 weeks, from April 2024 to January 2025.

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However, during the newspaper’s latest visit, the completion timeline was no longer displayed on site, but the contractor and project details remain.

The Secretary of the Medical Guild in Lagos, Charles Aisudo, confirmed to PREMIUM TIMES that the elevator had been fixed but is not yet operational. Until all the floors have been renovated.”

Mr Aisudo said the rehabilitation of the building was being carried out in phases.

A house officer familiar with the development, who requested anonymity, said the 10th, ninth, eighth and seventh floors had been completed by February 2026, while work subsequently progressed to the sixth, fifth and fourth floors.

The source said construction had slowed at some point because water was seeping through the ceilings, leaving the affected areas damp and soaking the walls and other parts of the building. The construction later picked up after the Medical Guild engaged the Lagos State government over the project.

The residence has capacity for about 100 doctors working at General Hospital, Lagos, Lagos Island Maternity Hospital and Massey Street Children’s Hospital, according to the source.

“Doctors are an important part of the hospitals’ frontline workforce,” the source said, adding that the condition of the building had created accommodation challenges that affected the hospitals’ ability to bring in more doctors.

Government’s update

On 3 August, the Lagos State government also provided an update on the rehabilitation.

The state’s Commissioner for Health, Akin Abayomi, said the government had completed the installation of new elevators at the residence, but that they would be commissioned only after the civil works were completed.

Mr Abayomi said the 10-storey building was undergoing phased renovation because doctors working in hospitals around the facility still use the residence.

The government said the rehabilitation and elevator installation were part of efforts to improve the facility three years after the death of the doctor.

“Three years after the tragic loss of Dr Vwaere Diaso, Lagos State remains steadfast in its commitment to ensuring that such a tragedy never happens again.

“We deeply value the lives of our medical professionals and every Lagosian,” the commissioner was quoted to have said.

Mr Abayomi also confirmed that the lift installation phase has already been completed.

He added that the state has introduced stricter operational standards by implementing the Lagos State Safety Commission’s guidelines for lift operations and management.

He explained that the renovation is being carried out in phases because the building remains occupied by doctors.

Three years later

The doctor died on 1 August 2023 after the elevator at the House Officers’ Residence crashed while she was inside. The incident triggered widespread outrage and prompted investigations and sanctions by the Lagos State government.

In a 2024 investigation, PREMIUM TIMES documented the poor state of the hospital’s infrastructure and facilities, including dilapidated buildings, inadequate equipment and other challenges affecting healthcare delivery.

The investigation also examined the condition of the doctors’ residence and the planned rehabilitation of the building, which is still ongoing three years later.

The report also sparked reactions on social media, including from Lagos governorship candidate Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, who described its findings as a “damning indictment” of the state’s healthcare management. In an X post, Mr Rhodes-Vivour highlighted issues raised in the report, including the lack of functional surgical theatres, inadequate medical equipment, underfunding and delays in infrastructure repairs.

READ ALSO: Lagos govt disputes claim Alimosho hospital has only one dialysis machine

Ongoing development

The house officer said the situation at the hospital is particularly stressful for doctors living on the upper floors and having to use the stairs, but “we understand the situation and have adapted while waiting for the rehabilitation to be completed.”

“If you are going downstairs, you have to sort out everything you need to do downstairs before going back upstairs,” the source said.

Despite the challenges, the house officer said that efforts to improve the hospital’s infrastructure and services are ongoing. According to the source, construction work is currently ongoing on several wards, while the surgical department is preparing to begin laparoscopic surgery. This procedure had not been available at the facility.