A consultant physician has died after collapsing only a few minutes after arriving at a private hospital in Kano State to attend to patients scheduled for an evening clinic.
The incident occurred at Arewa Surgery Hospital in the Hotoro area of Kano, where the late doctor, identified as Dr. Ibrahim, had reportedly agreed to take over appointments for another consultant who could not keep to his schedule.
The incident was recounted by Suleiman Harbo, an aide to the Jigawa State Governor, who said he witnessed the tragedy while accompanying his aged mother to the hospital for treatment.
Harbo said they arrived at about 5 p.m. but were informed that the consultant they were expected to see would no longer be available. Hospital officials later told waiting patients that Dr. Ibrahim would handle the consultations.
According to him, several elderly patients, most of them above 80 years of age, remained in the waiting area for hours before enquiries were made about the doctor's arrival.
He explained that the hospital later contacted the physician by telephone, and he assured staff that he would come after observing the Maghrib prayer.
Harbo said the doctor arrived shortly afterwards but suddenly lost strength and collapsed almost immediately after stepping out of his vehicle.
He was quickly taken into the hospital's emergency unit, where fellow doctors made desperate efforts to resuscitate him. However, he was confirmed dead about 15 minutes later.
The governor's aide described the development as devastating, saying both patients and hospital workers were overwhelmed by grief.
He noted that several senior medical consultants fought to save the doctor's life, while the elderly patients who had waited to be treated watched the tragic scene unfold.
Harbo further recalled that his mother, who was unaware of the incident, asked if the doctor had arrived. Before he could answer, another patient informed her that the physician had just passed away.
According to him, she immediately prayed for the deceased and decided to return home without seeing another doctor.
Harbo also disclosed that people who were with the consultant during his final moments said his last spoken words were, "La ilaha illallah," the Islamic declaration of faith.
He described the late physician as a dedicated medical professional whose sudden death came as a painful shock to patients, colleagues and relatives.
As of the time of filing this report, the cause of the doctor's sudden collapse and death had not been determined.
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