Lawsuit challenging the employment termination of Georgina Ahamefule, auxiliary nurse by the Imperial Medical Center, by the Chief Medical Director, Dr. Alex Molokwu, based on her HIV-positive status. Right to health; Right to informed consent for HIV testing; Right to pre and post HIV test counseling.
The decision was handed down on September 27, 2012 and efforts to enforce the order of the court, particularly with respect to damages, are currently underway.
The decision represents a major victory for Georgina Ahamefule and for all those living with HIV. This is the first judicial pronouncement in Nigeria that recognizes the unlawfulness of HIV testing without the individual’s informed consent. Further, it is equally definitive on the point that conducting HIV tests on an individual without pre-test and post-test counseling constitutes unlawful negligence. The case also establishes the principle that denial of medical care on grounds of HIV-positive status constitutes a flagrant violation of the right to health. The monetary damages of 7 Million Naira awarded against the hospital and its Chief Medical director sends a strong signal that this kind of unjustifiable and unlawful discrimination against people living with HIV will no longer be tolerated.