37-year-old Nigerian caregiver slumps, dies in UK

A 37-year-old Nigerian woman, Chidimma Ezenyili, who had been working as a caregiver in the United Kingdom slumped on February 22 and died two days later.

According to News Express Nigeria on Wednesday, the incident occurred while Ezenyili was attending to an elderly woman, Ian Hale in Scott Road, leading to her collapse while on duty.

Before Ezenyili migrated to the UK, she was said to have practised law in Nigeria, She had been caring for Hale for the past five months alongside her husband, Friday, both of whom relocated in August 2023 to provide their toddler daughter, Mandy, with a brighter future.

Catherine Segal, Hale’s daughter, recounted the events, noting that despite feeling unwell, Ezenyili continued her duties out of commitment to her responsibilities.

Hale’s daughter, Catherine Segal, said, “She (Ezenyili) was driven there by her husband with their three-year-old daughter as she wasn’t feeling well but didn’t want to let my dad down.”

Speaking further, Segal said the caregiver collapsed on Thursday, February 22, and stopped breathing and did not have a pulse. “Naturally, her husband started shouting for help. The neighbourhood raced to help. Myself and my husband ran outside along with our next-door neighbour and our neighbour from across the road. We had two GoodSAM first responders arrive shortly after to assist. The community first responder along with several ambulances, police and the critical care team arrived to take over attempts to save her life and were successful in getting her on life support in the ambulance.”

Segal said the deceased was taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, where doctors at the neurosciences critical care unit discovered she had suffered a severe brain haemorrhage.

In his narration, Segal’s husband, Saul said; “Sadly, life support was turned off two days later, on February 24, and she passed with her husband by her side. Suzy came here as a carer to fill a need in our community. She was qualified in law in Nigeria and was planning to attain her qualifications to practise law here after her sponsorship as a career finished. She was a really good carer. Kind, considerate and always willing to help no matter what the circumstances. Her dream was for her daughter, Mandy, to attend school in the UK and to make a new life here where she would have the opportunities that Suzy and Friday never had growing up in Nigeria.”