The late Sumaila Amadu
A man has accused the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) of failing to provide critical support to his brother, Sumaila Amadu, who died during a dialysis session.
In a lengthy Facebook post on August 29, 2026, explaining the circumstances that he believes led to his brother’s death, Salman Al Faris said his brother, who had chronic kidney disease, was undergoing his scheduled dialysis at the hospital’s Renal Clinic on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, when a power outage occurred.
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He said Sumaila had been receiving dialysis twice every week and usually regained his strength after the sessions.
According to him, he called his brother at about 9:00 pm and was told that he had started his dialysis session.
“At about 9:00 pm, I called my brother to check on him. He told me that he had started his dialysis session,” he wrote.
He stated that he called again at about 10:20 pm and was informed that the session was still ongoing and that Sumaila would call him later.
“I called again at approximately 10:20 pm. He told me that he was still undergoing dialysis and that he would call me later,” he narrated.
However, he said his next call at about 10:45 pm brought worrying news from a friend who had accompanied Sumaila to the dialysis centre.
“At about 10:45 pm, I called again. This time, I was informed by my friend, who had accompanied Sumaila to the dialysis centre, that there had been a power blackout and that Sumaila was having difficulty breathing,” he alleged.
The man further claimed that the hospital’s standby power plant was not working and that there was no oxygen available at the renal clinic.
“I was further informed that although the hospital’s standby power plant wasn’t working and there was reportedly no oxygen available at the renal clinic at the time,” he said.
He said Sumaila struggled to breathe during the power outage before eventually dying.
“My brother struggled to breathe during this critical period. Despite his efforts to survive, Sumaila eventually passed away,” he stated.
He said that the incident has left the family questioning whether everything possible was done to save Sumaila’s life.
“We cannot help but ask whether everything that could have been done to save his life was actually done,” he said.
Meanwhile, the family is calling for a thorough, transparent and independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death.
According to Salman, the issue goes beyond his brother and calls for urgent action to protect other patients undergoing dialysis.
“We therefore believe that the circumstances surrounding Sumaila’s death deserve a thorough, transparent and independent investigation. Our family deserves to know exactly what happened during his final moments, what medical interventions were provided, whether oxygen was available, what caused the interruption during his dialysis, and whether the hospital’s emergency systems functioned as they should.
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“This is not only about Sumaila. Today, it is my brother. Tomorrow, it could be someone else’s brother, sister, mother, father or child,” he said.
He called for accountability and measures to ensure that essential emergency support is available to patients when needed.
“We are calling for answers, accountability and urgent action to ensure that no other patient loses their life because essential emergency support is unavailable when it is needed most,” he added.
MAG/VPO
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