UNIVERSITY OF CALABAR TEACHING HOSPITAL, NIGERIA
I am a medical student in University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Nigeria. Last night was like every other regular night of observing and learning from my consultant, patient folder on table. Very calm and uneventful till this couple walked in and asked me who was the doctor. I hastily pointed to my consultant who somehow was not very enthusiastic because of his mood but was quickly snapped into character by the sight of their 6-8ish old looking daughter who tagged closely behind them.
Malnutrition was our first guess when we saw her as she was looking like it, so Dr Edem suddenly heralded, is she my patient?
They responded yes and no.
The father character then pulled out a small paper which later turned out to be a form for Dr Edem to fill to the Police, some sort of Police Doctors Report.
At this point, he asked "wetin happen oga" and he responded saying, Dr, this is my daughter, we catch one boy for our yard toilet de put am hand for body.
Immediately I heard this, I think the world around me sort of paused for some seconds cos I was dazed.
Long story short, Dr Edem went ahead to ask that this wouldn't have been the first time, the man said it was the first(said in a mannerism that sounded like he had prior information of some sort).
As is signature Archie, Dr Edem argued, now very aggressively, refuting to do anything unless he examined, the man said to him "Doctor, na this report we come for make we use am collect that boy oga N50,000( approximately $150) for this thing where them do our child, police say we go fit collect reach that amount.
Dr Edem kept on pressing till they let him examine.
On doing a V.E, what he saw was a gaping introitus with whitish substance suggestive of Candida, at this moment, the stench blew open the near normal air filled in the room, so much that the Chaperon exclaimed for help, so much foulness in the air coming from an 8year old.
Stay with me...
Probing the poor girl further, Dr Edem asked,
"Atink na since last year him start to de put hand for your body?"
The girl answered "no ooo, na before before then", she went ahead to describe an event that tallied with the commencement of this violation to her mom which indicated it was for atleast two years, It was then she ascertained that it wasn't just hand the violator used but he was actively engaging her in active coitus, active sex, 8years old, for 2years, tears consumed me.
Then the Dad, realising Dr Edem was gonna blow this out of proportion, stepped in as Daddy that he was na to tell us that it was a family matter, he further told us to write our report, that they'd handle it like a family.
Dr Edem sadly and angrily went back to doing his job, while at it, the poor girl started coughing uncontrollably, the Mom drew his attention to the cough and asked that he looked into it, so he grudgingly asked how long she was coughing for, they answered "since December", then he went further to enquire if she was losing weight?
The mom said yes o, but that she's been giving her something I can't still pronounce, something that sounded like concoctions.
Dr Edem was about to resume his hostility of pressing for investigations to be done when the Dad suddenly asked that they should be leaving.
Long story short, that's how we met an 8year old girl who was habitually violated without recuse and a set of parents who were either ignorant of how enormous this was or numb to how much damage their daughter has incurred innocently with them as "Parent".
Girl left without investigation or treatment despite all our effort, they were in a hurry to return to the Police.
We've been trying all day to follow up, sort of contact trace but fa fa nothing.
I'm still broken.
This was Calabar, Nigeria's most civilised city, scratch that, West Africa's Best actually, in 2018.
We should be afraid for the rest of Nigeria.