Prominent Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has broken her silence months after the death of her 21-month-old son, accusing a Lagos-based hospital of interfering with efforts to investigate the circumstances surrounding his death.
In a post on her social media platform Facebook, Adichie alleged that since January 7, the day her son died at Euracare Hospital, efforts to establish what happened have been delayed and obstructed through legal and administrative actions.
She said a coronial inquest into the death of her son, Nkanu, which was expected to begin in April, has not progressed as planned. She accused Euracare Hospital of frustrating the process and attempting to halt it through court action.
“The ultimate and utter loneliness of grief is that only you can know the true depth of your despair. I long for, at least, peace to mourn, but Euracare Hospital has robbed me even of that,” she wrote.
“I have decided to make this letter public because to keep silent about Euracare's evil is to enable it. I do not want anyone mentioned to be personally targeted. I have erased two names and left two for clarity and credibility. Since the letter was sent in April, Euracare has become uglier.”
Adichie said the hospital has “stalled and muddied and obfuscated” the inquest process and has now sought intervention from Nigeria’s Federal High Court to stop the inquiry entirely.
This was her first public comment since the tragedy involving her son, who was one of twin boys born in 2024 through surrogacy. She said she decided to speak out due to what she described as continued delays and complications surrounding the investigation.
She also raised concerns over the hospital’s explanation of her son’s death. Euracare Hospital had indicated that the cause was bacterial meningitis, a claim she disputed in her letter.
“There was no medical evidence to make such a claim on his death certificate,” she said.
According to Adichie, the handling of medical records has also been a point of concern. She described the documents provided as incomplete and said they were “strikingly unprofessional”, adding that “one was inaccurate”.
Court documents submitted by her legal team state that Nkanu was initially admitted to Atlantis Hospital in Lagos with what was described as a worsening but mild illness. Plans were later made to transfer him to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, United States, for further treatment.
Before the planned transfer, the child was referred to Euracare Hospital for pre-flight medical assessment, which included an MRI scan and a lumbar puncture.
He died on January 7 after undergoing the diagnostic procedures at the facility. Adichie and her family have accused medical staff of negligence, alleging that oxygen was denied and that excessive sedation was administered, which they claim led to a cardiac arrest.
A Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria investigation panel had earlier identified a possible case of medical negligence involving the hospital.
“If this is how Euracare manages a crisis, it is little wonder it mismanaged our precious son's care. Most egregiously, Euracare is now asking a High Court to stop the inquest. An inquest is a public judicial inquiry designed to establish the circumstances surrounding a death. It is not a trial. It is not a claim for damages. It is simply a search for the truth. If Euracare cares about the truth, then why create delays and distractions and now, finally, try to stop an inquest?” she posed.
Euracare Hospital has expressed its “deepest sympathies” over the child’s death but denied any wrongdoing, insisting that all care provided met international standards.
Adichie, known for award-winning novels such as Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah, has in recent years engaged in global discussions and moderated high-level events, including sessions involving former United States Vice President Kamala Harris and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
She lives in the United States but was in Nigeria during the Christmas period when the incident occurred.
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