About a week after the death of Abuja-based singer Nanyah Nwangene, who was bitten by a cobra in her home, Sa’ad Ahmed, the Chief Medical Director of the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi, has said the hospital could not save her due to her late arrival for urgent medical intervention.
Ahmed disclosed this at the weekend while speaking with journalists on the sidelines of the 2026 budget defence session of the Senate Committee on Health, attended by heads of government-owned tertiary health institutions.
He also threw his weight behind calls for the inclusion of state and private hospitals in the Centralised Housemanship System for newly graduated medical doctors.
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The CMD debunked social media reports that anti-venom was not administered to Nwangene, saying it was promptly given but could not reverse the systemic damage caused by the venom.
He said,”First, I want to extend my condolences to the family and friends of the deceased. But I would say this is a case of a cobra.
“Cobra is the most poisonous snake that we know. And time is of the essence. From when one gets bitten and then to access that care.”
He added, “She presented to our hospital over two hours after she was bitten by that cobra. And by that time, she had already started manifesting with some systemic envenomation. And contrary to what we see on social media, we didn’t have snake venom.
“Two doses were promptly given. The first dose was given during the infusion. After that one, another dose was given.”
The CMD further stated, “So she had two doses of snake venom. But of course, the venom had already gone systemic. And we all know the cobra is highly poisonous.
“If she had presented probably much earlier, within 10 to 15 minutes. Usually, that’s when anti-venoms become most effective. But she came over two hours after the deadly incident.”
He described Nwangene’s case as a wake-up call, particularly for hospitals that may not be prepared for such emergencies, saying, “But for FMC Abuja, we had anti-snake venom, all stock. And our emergency services are top-notch. And our staff were fully on the ground.”
On the call for the inclusion of state and private hospitals in the Centralised Housemanship System, Ahmed said the move would help address the shortage of training slots for young doctors.
He said, “Housemanship is a period where young graduates in medicine go to learn hands-on before they can now go for their NYC.
“So the federal hospitals, yes, almost all the federal tertiary hospitals are actually doing housemanship. But then the quota allocated is not enough.”
He added, “It’s not like a classroom where you come to me and say, okay, I’m giving you 200, I’m giving you this.
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“It has to be based on the number of beds that you have, the number of specialists that you have, and all the other facilities put together. So I think if the state government can key into this centralised system, it’s going to help a great deal.
“So I think when we have all this centralised is going to help. What the Registrar of Medical and Dental Council presented yesterday (Thursday) will just be history.”
