Medical negligence and the legal responsibilities of healthcare providers have come under focus in a legal analysis by Oyetola Muyiwa Atoyebi, SAN, FCIArb (U.K) (Notary Public), who examines the circumstances under which harm suffered by a patient may give rise to legal liability in Nigeria.
In the article titled “Medical Negligence in Nigeria: Patients’ Rights, Professional Liability of Healthcare Providers, and Available Legal Remedies,” Atoyebi SAN explains that an unsuccessful treatment, medical complication, injury or death does not, without more, amount to medical negligence.
According to the legal analysis, the critical question is whether the healthcare provider or institution breached the applicable professional standard of care and whether that breach caused the injury or harm complained of.
The article further highlights the protections available to patients under Nigerian law, including rights relating to information, personal autonomy, emergency medical treatment, confidentiality and access to legal redress, while recognising the importance of protecting legitimate clinical judgment exercised by medical professionals.
Atoyebi, examines Nigeria’s legal framework governing medical negligence, with particular attention to the duty and standard of care owed by healthcare providers, the rights of patients and the circumstances that may expose healthcare professionals and institutions to civil, professional or criminal liability.
The analysis also considers the evidential requirements for establishing medical negligence and the remedies that may be available to patients who suffer harm as a consequence of a legally established breach of duty.
Beyond liability and compensation, the article underscores the importance of safeguards capable of reducing avoidable medical harm, strengthening professional accountability and promoting greater public confidence in Nigeria’s healthcare delivery system.
As the principle “Ubi jus, ibi remedium” affirms, where there is a right, there is a remedy.
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