Dupes in hospitals: Nigerians raise alarm as doctors resort to fake surgery to exploit patients

Several Nigerians have had  harrowing experiences in the hands of medical doctors with wrong diagnoses for for the sake  of making money. For some, the consequences were fatal; for others, they resulted in long-term health complications.

Despite the advancements in medical technology and the presence of skilled professionals, systemic issues, such as greed and quest for easy money continue to affect  proper diagnosis and treatment. Many unscrupulous doctors have continued to disregard the  Hippocratic oath by deliberately giving wrong diagnosis that could lead to surgery on patients for money.

Overburdened hospitals, inadequate diagnostic tools, and a lack of continuity in patient care are just some of the challenges that contribute to such tragic outcomes.

Allegations of  wrong diagnoses in order to perform fake surgery because of money” have been widely reported in Nigerian media, often featuring accounts from victims and even other medical professionals. These reports describe serious ethical breaches, including misdiagnosis, unnecessary procedures, and outright fraud, which contribute to a growing mistrust in the healthcare system.

Fake diagnosis for money was common among U.S doctors in the 1970s, when the rate of surgical procedure escalated, and arousing the suspicion of authorities and it became a major issues until steps were taken against it by the government.

The 1980s  could be said to have significantly marked a  period of crisis in the Nigerian healthcare system, characterized by widespread economic downturns and the implementation of structural adjustment programmes (SAPs). These conditions led to a decline in standards, shortages of medical resources, and increased unethical behavior in the medical field.

Research into the history of Nigerian medical negligence indicates that wrong diagnoses and negligence were major  issues, driven by materialism (amassing wealth at the expense of patients).

Business Hallmark’s investigations show that this disturbing issue of wrong diagnosis also highlight another trend of a fraudulent medical referral kickback scam where doctors, hospitals, and diagnostic centers overbill patients.

Regulation and Ethics

The Medical and Dental Practitioners Act, creating the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) to disciplinary tribunals for malpractice, came into operation in June 1988 to curb such unethical behaviour.

A  Lagos doctor, who craved anonymity, told this medium that “While unethical practices were present, it was often difficult for patients to receive legal redress during that era due to a cultural perception of doctors as figures, who could do no wrong. Many doctors engage in such practice because of money, many put patients under anesthesia and give the impression of having performed surgery on the  patient.

He noted that the 1980s  was the height of these unethical practices, a  “decades of moral laxity and weak social structures that led to corruption in the healthcare sector, which has continued to challenge the quality of care in Nigeria.”

Giving credence to this sharp practice, a  Canada-based Nigerian doctor, Arinze Onwumelu, alleged in a viral video  recently that some practitioners in Nigeria diagnose patients with appendicitis unnecessarily to generate profit. He claimed doctors might wheel a patient into an operating theatre and simulate a procedure without making an actual incision or removing the appendix.

There have also been cases where individuals, sometimes in connivance with medical personnel, create fake diagnoses and medical reports to solicit funds from the public for non-existent surgeries.

Opening The Lid

The issue of wrong diagnosis came into the front burner recently with the death of  a 62-year-old Mrs. Justina Awokumaka in Abuja. Her death ignited a firestorm of concern, raising the centrality of the danger it constitutes to healthcare.

Late Awokumaka,  who resided in Bwari, allegedly  gave up the ghost after what her family believes was an unnecessary appendectomy and subsequent complications during cancer treatment at a teaching hospital in Gwagwalada.

Her story was shared on February 25, 2026, by an X user, Tamunokuro Obietonbara (@sankofa360).

According to him, Awokumaka first noticed  serious  abdominal pain last year and went to the General Hospital in Bwari.

With no doctors available, she sought care at a private hospital the same day. There, a doctor reportedly diagnosed appendicitis after a manual abdominal exam, without conducting a blood test or scan and scheduled her for surgery.

The appendectomy was reportedly performed a few days later. She initially appeared to recover, but within a week, her condition worsened as her pain intensified and her abdomen became rigid.

She was then transferred to the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, where tests revealed she had cervical cancer, not appendicitis.

False Alarm of Cancer

In the recent past also patients both make and female have be diagnosed with one form of cancer or the other, which later turned out differently after second opinions for those who could afford the money for further consultations.

Doctors advised rest before cancer surgery, but four weeks later, preparations were halted due to dangerously low blood levels.

During her final hours, she underwent a blood transfusion after prolonged difficulty finding veins.

A doctor administered blood through a vein in her neck. About an hour later, her son noticed severe swelling, realising blood was leaking into the surrounding tissue.

Nurses were said to have delayed in responding, and when a doctor eventually assessed her, he allegedly downplayed the situation. She died later that night.

Obietonbara claimed that the first surgery was driven by greed, and proper laboratory examinations could have saved her life.

“The doctor, who carried out the appendicitis surgery lied. She did not have appendicitis. He took advantage of the poor woman’s naivety. If the first surgery was not conducted and a proper examination had been carried out, she would have been alive today. First, she died from a doctor’s greed and second, from a doctor’s negligence,” he wrote.

A woman, who identified as Nana said she once had  severe stomach issues  and was taken to a clinic on the Lagos Mainland. She met the doctor on duty and explained her symptoms. The doctor listened carefully and without any test concluded she  had to be operated on for the removal of her appendix.

She was told the operation was imperative and must be done within five days or there will be a rupture, and was billed about N300,000 for it.

The lady said  she decided it was too expensive and made up her mind to go to Ghana for it considering it will be cheaper for her as she is from Ghana. She got to Ghana and series of rigorous tests were done on her, and after a week, she had another diagnosis and was given drugs that would last a week indicating she will be fine at the expiration.

Officials Are Helpless

According to the chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association, Lagos State branch, Dr. Babajide Saheed,  no qualified doctor would perform surgery without conducting the necessary medical laboratory investigations, except in life-threatening emergencies.

Saheed explained that surgeries are broadly classified as minor, intermediate or major and that the patient’s condition at the time determines the appropriate course of action.

“In cases where a patient is in severe pain or has a brain tumour causing life-threatening complications, surgery may need to be performed urgently to relieve pressure or remove the tumour. In such cases, there may not be time to wait for every routine test before proceeding.

“In the case of a gunshot wound, doctors may need to operate immediately to save the patient’s life. While emergency tests may be conducted simultaneously, the medical team do not delay life-saving intervention. The priority is to stabilise and treat the patient,” he said.

The NMA chairman warned that doctors, who ignore proper medical procedures risk endangering lives and facing serious consequences.

A  civil servant with the ministry of education, Kwara state,  Alade Adeoye, noted that a heart condition diagnosis in 2023 almost changed  the course of his life.

After experiencing episodes of shortness of breath,  he  underwent an electrocardiogram and echocardiogram.

According to him,  a sonographer told him that the results indicated cardiomyopathy.

Adeoye  stated that,  “For a moment, that single word almost became my whole reality. I was dead scared.”

Not convinced, he sought the professional opinion of another cardiologist where an evaluation revealed that his symptoms were linked not to her heart but to an ulcer caused by helicobacter pylori infection.

“If I had stopped at the first diagnosis, I would have lived in fear for nothing. Sometimes you really do have to listen deeper and keep asking questions,” he said.

A consultant in the Division of Paediatric Surgery at Usman Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto State, Dr. Yazeed Muhammad, recently warned that performing surgery without laboratory evaluation could lead to serious complications or even death.

“No surgeon will perform surgery without adequate evaluation of the patient. You need a lab test to know what is wrong with the patient. However, any doctor, who tries that is a quack, and it will have severe consequences for both the patient and the doctor. Sometimes, the patients are left with serious complications that they battle for their entire life, or it leads to death.

Lessons For Patients

A nurse at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Deborah Toyin Olowojofe said that  preoperative tests, including complete blood count, blood grouping, infectious disease screening and anaesthesia assessment, are mandatory before any surgery.

“No surgeon will operate in our hospital without first ensuring that the patient has undergone the necessary laboratory tests. Anyone who attempts to operate without these tests will face disciplinary action. This practice is common in private hospitals, however what the place seek second opinion.

As earlier said, Dr. Onwuemelu said the presence of a surgical scar could mislead patients s into assuming that the appendix had already been removed.

“There are a couple of doctors back home, in Africa generally, in the process of trying to hustle, as they call it, they tell patients they have appendicitis and take them to the theatre, and just slice the skin, close it and ask the patient to go.

“In medicine, the sin of commission is worse than the sin of omission. You should tell the patient you don’t know what’s wrong with them and let them go home, than to tell them that they have appendicitis, take them to the theatre, just do a skin incision, close them, collect money and let the patient go.

If it’s not appendicitis, tell the patient it’s not appendicitis. If you don’t know, say you don’t know. You cannot put somebody to sleep, cut off the skin and still leave the appendix intact,” he added.

Barrister David Abolarin, SAN, told Business Hallmark that failure or negligence  to carry out necessary medical tests before surgery is a criminal offence.

He  noted that  certain prerequisite tests are essential to assess a patient’s health before any operation.