A fertility clinic, Redwood Clinics Abeokuta, Ogun State, which was alleged to have harvested the organs of two under-aged girls for the sum of N200,000, has denied the allegation.
The clinic in a statement said it has become necessary to state its own side of the story due to misleading information released to the general.
The statement reads thus: “The two ladies in question, whose names we shall not be disclosed in the interest of patient confidentiality, came to the hospital for voluntary egg donation.
“Egg donation is an integral part of in-vitro fertilization aimed at helping women with low egg reserve to achieve pregnancy through assisted reproductive technology.
“Egg donor programmes include self-administration of drugs by the participating donor. Eggs are microscopic and the aspiration of eggs is through a tiny needle, not in any way an organ harvest. Eggs in the human body are similarly lost during menstrual cycles, which is what egg donor cycles partially mirror.
“F.O. came to the clinic with B.A. who had participated in an egg donation programme in the past and was introduced as her cousin. F.O. expressed her desire to participate in the scheme and she later introduced P.I. who she claimed was her friend as a prospective donor. Each of them was given a registration and data form to fill out where they wrote down their relevant biodata, including date of birth and age. From the information, both of them were well over 18 years.
“They were asked questions to ascertain that they qualified and were fit for the scheme and were further counselled on the treatment protocol. They reaffirmed their willingness to participate.
“They were then physically examined, following which laboratory investigations were ordered. It took six weeks, from the day of registration to the day of egg collection at PF Clinic in Surulere, Lagos. During that period, they were injecting themselves at home with the prescribed medication. During this period, they made a number of scheduled visits to our hospital. F.O. had no complaints whatsoever after her egg collection in Lagos while P.I. had complaints of abdominal discomfort and mild lower abdominal pain for which she came to our hospital three days after egg collection.
“Her father followed her to the hospital and claimed that he did not know that the daughter had egg donation and that when the pain started they had taken her to another hospital in their neighbourhood where she was suspected to have appendicitis and planned for surgery. It was then that his daughter told him that she had egg donation and that she was told she might develop lower abdominal discomfort or pain. This made the father bring her to our hospital. We told them that the symptoms were not an unusual effect of the procedure, and they were reassured that she was not going to come to any harm. She was treated with painkillers and intravenous fluids and was discharged home the following day in good health. To the best of our knowledge, she has not had any complaints since then and both ladies have remained in good health.
“However, about two weeks after P.I’s discharge, we were informed that the father lodged a complaint at Meiran Police Station, claiming that his underage daughter and secretary were involved in organ harvesting, and he was demanding a sum of two hundred million naira as damages. The case was investigated by the police and we were found not to have committed any offence. In his instance, the case was transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti in Lagos and the findings were the same.
“It is pertinent to mention that from our records, the ladies were adults, and they have come to no harm due to any medical intervention in our care. We state for the records that no organ in their bodies is missing or damaged. Redwood Clinics Abeokuta is a responsible organisation that will not commit any act of illegality in its dealings with the public. We hold high the ethics of medical practice and will continue to deliver health care to the best of our abilities.
BEWARE All Rights Reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part without prior express written permission from Juliana Francis
