Officials of the Ministry of Health in Ondo State on Tuesday shut down a clinic believed to be operated by a quack doctor identified as Adewale Owolanke.
The clinic, which was located at Uso town in the Owo Local Government Area of the state, was shut down during the monitoring exercise carried out by the Ondo State Hospital Services and led by the Director in the department, Dr Olayinka Akinsete.
Commenting on the development, Akinsete explained that the ministry had been receiving reports about the quack doctor, performing surgical operations on innocent patients in the community.
He said, “There was a report signifying a high fatality rate in the hospital and when we got here today (Tuesday) , the place was initially locked up.
“It, however, eventually opened later. We saw all the instruments that he (the quack doctor ) had been using. We saw that he had been performing many surgeries, including Caesarean Section. Yet he denied it.
“He could not show us any certificate to prove that he is a doctor. We have closed down the place and other things will follow.”
The government official declared that the alleged quack doctor would be investigated alongside some certified medical doctors suspected to be working with him.
However, the suspect, Owolanke, said he was trained at the America Barbados University before returning to the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, where he is currently undergoing his clinicals.
He confessed to carrying out surgery in the hospital without a licence and claimed to have closed down the theatre. According to him, a particular certified medical doctor was assisting him.
Reacting to the incident, Chairman, Nigeria Medical Association, Ondo State chapter, Dr Dolani Gbelela, described the incident as unfortunate, saying “it is getting clearer that those identified as quacks are being aided by certified doctors.”
He noted that the NMA was interfacing with the monitoring unit of the ministry and government to tackle such challenges.
Gbelela urged the government listen to advice from the NMA on the issue of quackery in the medical profession.
