An island where pregnant women are not allowewed to go into labour at midnight

Firstclass Newsline gathered that the town has a population of over
20,000 people.
A two-day visit by Firstclass Newsline to the community was an eye
opener. The journey began from Coconut Bus Stop to the quayside during
a downpour. It was followed by a N100 boat ride with 14 other
passengers. But in the middle of the restless ocean, the engine
coughed and went off, setting off panic among the passengers. The boat
was in danger of tipping over as the passengers shifted about, several
of them thinking the end had come, but the driver and a few
level-headed passengers appealed for calm.
During several attempts to restart the engine, a boat loaded with
sachet water passed by, also on its way to Igbologun while a canoe,
with a lone female occupant, equally sailed by.
Finally, the driver brought the engine back to life and the journey
continued. As passengers disembarked at the destination, the reporter
was accosted by two young boys of about 12 and 16. They were there to
help offload passengers' luggage from the boat for a fee. Commercial
motorcycle riders (Okada) also swarmed around the passengers.
Welcome to Igbologun, a community made up of different tribes,
cultures and religions. It was gathered that Snake Island, on which
the community sits, derived its name from the (snaky) way it appears
on the map, contrary to the belief that it is so called because of the
large population of snakes there.
Snake Island has so much beach sand such that, as you walk, your legs
sink in and it is as if you're being pulled back. Interestingly, the
hugely populated island, situated in the heart of Apapa, is under
Amuwo-Odofin Local Government Area.
Despite being so close to the hub of trade and commerce, and all its
modernity, what would seem like another shocking discovery, for a
first-time visitor, is how typically rural the island remains.
Igbologun, despite a history of existence that precedes even the
Nigerian nation, is dying for government attention for the provision
of basic social amenities like schools, standard hospitals, tarred
roads, potable water, stable power, standard market place and means of
waste disposal, among others.
The first impressionable building to behold is Igbologun Senior
Secondary School. Close to it is a police post that offers the
community the only source of drinking water and it is about 30
minutes-walk into the heart of the community.
Trooping out were young and old women carrying trays of all sorts
laden with wares of smoked fish(Egun Fish). Young children were also
hawking.
A striking feature that immediately becomes apparent across the
community is the high number of pregnant teenage girls. This reporter
soon gathered that even though pregnant, majority of the girls are not
registered for ante natal care, mainly as a result of financial
constraint and cultural beliefs.
Findings showed that there is a sense of laxity that enables these
young girls engage in sexual activities. The development is
essentially fuelled by the high level of poverty in the community.
Many of the girls are lured with money by the young men who are boat
drivers or Okada operators.
"Most of these guys you see riding Okada or driving boat have more
than three girlfriends each because they make quick money from their
businesses and live like kings in the community," said Mr. Jude.
Further investigation revealed that whenever a pregnant woman in the
community goes into labour, particularly at mid-night, they are
usually in a dilemma. This is due to the inability to afford to
register in a standard hospital, and for those who could afford it,
reaching the centre at mid-night is a tug of war while obstetric
complication that may require surgery is out of the question. The
result is that many pregnant women and newborns often lose their
lives. The only Primary Healthcare Centre in Igbologun is defunct.
Firstclass Newsline encountered some men who had sad tales to tell.
David lost his wife during childbirth. Emeka, who lives in Mama P
compound in the community, also lost his wife along with a set of
twins while Daramola lost his wife and is left to bring up their baby
alone. What the three men have in common is that their wives fell into
labour at night.
Bolanle, David's wife, 27, may have been alive today to experience the
joy of motherhood, but her dream was cut short because she found
herself at Igbologun. Bolanle's desire to give life led her to the
great beyond. She fell into labour in the middle of the night.
"When she went into labour in the middle of the night, we already knew
there was a problem. Her mother called for help, but there was little
anyone could do because there was no means of conveying her to the
other side of the lagoon for medical attention", said Mr. Gbenga
Sosanya, a neighbour.
"Prior to her delivery time, Bolanle registered for antenatal at Tolu
Hospital in Ajegunle, but no boat could convey her there in the night.
She and her baby died after several hours of labour in the hands of
traditional birth attendants".
Pointing to the spot where Bolanle was buried, Sosanya said that the
trauma forced her parents to leave the community. He hinted that
several of such cases were recorded in the community until few years
ago, when someone set up a small private hospital.
"The only Primary Healthcare Centre in the community can simply be
described as an empty building because there are no doctors or nurses
and, most of the time, it is locked."
Agony of motherhood
Firstclass Newsline visited the private hospital. It has seven rooms
for the over 20,000 residents. The doctor in charge was battling to
save the life of Pasca Kapo, a year and six months old child who was
brought in a breathe away from death.
Pasca was brought in gasping for breath, his legs and arms cold. After
administering first aid, the doctor said he had severe malaria and
anaemia with PCV of 10 percent. To worsen matters, Pasca is
O-negative, a rare blood group. The doctor required a transfusion
urgently but the child's parents were broke. They were running from
pillar to pole to raise money.
After a lengthy persuasion, John Kapo, they boy's step father, spoke
with our reporter. "I am not the biological father of Pasca. I married
his mother when she was rejected while pregnant with him. It is the
present pregnancy she is carrying that belongs to me, but I just have
to help save him even though he is someone else's child", he narrated
"We tried our best at home in the first three days when he was showing
the signs, but when it went beyond us, we took him to the traditional
birth attendant where he was for two days. When he was at the point of
death, they said we should take him away."
In the nursing ward was Charity Felix. The 30-year-old woman recounted
how the doctor saved her life. "I went into labour around 2am. I had
registered at Sonnex Hospital in Ajegunle where I had my second child
who is presently six years old. My first child, who is 10, was
delivered by the Ijaw women here in Igbologun. I could not cross to
the other side of the ocean for delivery. When the Ijaw women tried
all their best to take the delivery, with no success, they sent me to
this private hospital".
In tears, Charity said her first two children were delivered normally
but the third was through C-section and she had been in the hospital
for two weeks and two days because they could not settle their bills.
"Recently, my husband lost his job, and to eat became a problem. We
have property to sell, but nobody is ready to buy. Even to pay the
house rent is very difficult." Charity, who hails from Igueben local
government area of Edo State, has lost contact with her parents since
she lost her handset.
Next to her was Elizabeth Luke, 20, who was rushed from a nearby
Island, Sabokogi. She went into labour around 7 pm and, after failure
by traditional birth attendants to deliver her of the body, around
4am, she was transported with a chartered speedboat to Igbologun
Medical Centre where she went through a C-section. Elizabeth said
there is a PHC in their community but no doctor and no drugs.
Several hours later, our reporter engaged Dr. Sodipo Gbolahan, who
opened up on the pathetic status of healthcare services in the
community.
Only doctor in the community
The only doctor serving the over 20,000 presidents of Igbologan
graduated from University of Ibadan in 2005. He served at Bishop
Shanahan Hospital, Nsukka and later joined Ibadan Central Hospital for
a year and a half before moving to Otolu Medical Centre in
Olodi-Apapa.
While at Olodi-Apapa, a patient attending ante natal facilitated his
relocation to Igbologun. "When one of the pregnant women who came for
ante natal told me they lost a pregnant woman with twins overnight
because there was no means to transport her to the hospital, I was
surprised and asked why they did not call for an ambulance. She said
no ambulance could get there,"the doctor said.
Gbolahan discussed his intention to relocate with his wife who kicked
against it. "But as God will have it, she was having problem with her
own pregnancy; so I quickly took her to the United States of America
and, before she returned, I had moved to the community."
Over the past five years, he has been practising in Igbologun. Most of
his patients have been vulnerable groups, children, pregnant women and
the elderly. He explained that most of his patients come to his clinic
after trying so many options and only come at the point of death.
"Few (pregnant women) register across the ocean in Ajegunle but
usually have no means to cross the ocean and end up dead in the hands
of traditional birth attendants or are brought to me very late. There
was a case I just discharged, she presented very late, but eventually
we saved her life but lost the baby. She went to be delivered in a
church in the community, where there was no nurse. After several hours
of prayer and miracles did not happen, they sent for me,"the doctor
said.
"When I got there, there was no nurse to take the delivery. The woman
was already weak, the baby distressed. She couldn't push, so we had a
C-section to bring the baby out dead, but the mother was alive. She
spent three weeks here and they were able to raise the N70,000 bill.
Sometimes when patients present, I don't expect them to survive but
miraculously they do.
"Generally here, people don't go to hospital for delivery. They
believe that strong women should deliver at home. There was a lady
who, during her first pregnancy, tried to deliver at home but lost the
baby. When she got pregnant a second time, she ran to me and said
doctor, 'nothing must happen to this baby'.
"When I came here five years ago, they told me there was no light two
years before my arrival and in my five years of staying, there was no
light. The situation persisted until January this year when we had
light because Governor Akinbode came to our aid. But for three months
now, it's been blackout".
Running the hospitalGbolahan began running his hospital inside a room,
self-contained, but later expanded. "I purchased used beds from
doctors in Ajegunle. I keep one room as private ward in which those
admitted are able to pay their bills. It is from there I settle my own
bills, pay my staff and buy drugs. I am here until the day I will not
be able to cope again. Probably before that time, government may have
come to their rescue."
Way forward
He urged the state government to partner with private facilities
because Igbologun is just one of several islands. "If you go to
Igboejo, Tomaro, Itu Agan or Sabokoji, government can put three
secondary healthcare centres which will feed Island Maternity or the
Lagos General Hospital,"the doctor said.
"Also in this community, there is nothing to motivate the younger
ones. After their primary school, the next thing is to be a boat
driver or a fisherman. They seduce females and impregnate them and
later go for abortions that result in complications.
"I was trying to talk to the school principal to start a scholarship.
There could be potential doctors here. If a doctor is from among them,
they would be committed. Half of the girls drop out in SS2 due to
pregnancy. Most of time when I talk to the ladies, they say after
secondary schools they will get married."
Religious leader
The Chief Imam of Igbologun, Osani Saka Olaribigbe, who complained
bitterly over the state of healthcare in the community, said the only
PHC in Igbologun can best be described as an empty building. "In that
health centre, they don't have any equipment, no drugs, no doctor; so
we cannot call it hospital, it is just an ordinary building. The two
nurses their only refer people to urban areas to seek healthcare and
once it is 2pm they close the centre,"Olaribigbe said.
"The last delivery I could remember they took in that PHC was in 2004.
Even when they refer us to across the ocean, there is no means of
transporting our pregnant women to the General Hospital or Kadoso
Hospital in Ajegunle".
Traditional ruler
The Baale of the Igbologun , Chief Amisu Alao Gegeiyawo, also
complained that they have tabled their challenges on several occasion
to the government without favourable outcome. He said that among the
challenges confronting the community was lack of waste disposal
facilities and source of potable water.
Gegeiyawo said that it's been long since they enjoyed government
service in the area of quality healthcare service. "The only
intervention we enjoy once a while is from non -governmental
organisations, which come to distribute drugs and mosquito net to our
people,"the traditional head explained.
"The PHC is under Amuwo Odofin Local Government and I have complained
on several occasions about the on-availability of medical personnel at
the centre and no drugs, but the situation remains the same."
At the PHC, the Health Assistant, Mrs. Aminat Ogungbemi, declined to
make comments. The compound was overgrown with bush while the doctors'
lodge was under lock and key.