…following two maternal deaths
By Alva Solomon
Relatives of two women from the town of Mabaruma believe that faulty readings from an ultra-sound machine at the town’s hospital as well as the ‘harsh’ treatment of the medical doctors at the institution may have been responsible for the recent loss of their new born babies.
A relative of one of women, both of whom are teachers told the Village Voice Newspaper that the readings from the ultra-sound machine provided delivery times which were later than the time the women were expected to give birth.
She said her sister lost her son two weeks ago after she was transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) from Mabaruma.
As she detailed her sister’s experience at the Mabaruma Hospital, she noted that her sibling is a diabetic case and she also suffers from hypertension. As such, she is deemed a high risk patient. The woman said that her sister joined the clinic during the early stages of her pregnancy and every two weeks the staff would test her pressure and sugar. She said her siter was under the impression that she is okay and she noted that she went to the clinic at the hospital on June 21st, which was her last clinic date.
She said that the staff would ask the health workers to examine the pregnant mothers but she noted that on the date in question, her sister asked that a nurse examine her instead since she was not too confident with the health worker examining her. She said the nurse then examined her sister and informed her that she was at 32 weeks into her pregnancy but after counting back the dates, the woman told her she was at 35 weeks.
The nurse then informed her that she was ready to give birth since the baby had already ‘turned’. The nurse then advised her to do an ultra sound at the hospital and after the examination, she said the result indicated that her sister was in fact at 32 weeks. Following that, the nurse sent the patient to the doctor and the medical professional indicated that the hospital would admit her and send her to the city at the GPHC on June 24th.
On that date, the woman travelled to the city and she spent the entire day there but according to her sister, the process seemed never-ending. As such she asked to be discharged. She said that since her sister was expected to give birth late in July, she thought something seemed wrong because of the signs she was experiencing. As such, she decided to visit the Balwant Singh Hospital and to her surprise, she was informed by a popular female physician there that her baby died since the week before. She said the woman underwent emergency treatment and she noted that when the doctor rechecked her card, the woman was shocked at the treatment she received at Mabaruma. “Doctor {name given} said she should have had a Caesarean because it was too late,” she noted.
She noted that her sister related that the doctor at Mabaruma who treated her sister was not kind to her during the pregnancy, noting that at one point she asked the patient why she was visiting her, days after one of her clinic dates. She said her sister attended clinic one Monday morning and everything seemed normal. However, she experienced a back pain on Friday and as such she went to the hospital to see the doctor. “The doctor looked at her and said you went here already,” the woman’s sister related.
Another woman, who also teaches at Mabaruma lost her child a month ago shortly after giving birth at the hospital at the Region One town. Reports are that the ultrasound machine was also cited as being at the centre of the issue since the child was born at a time beyond when the mother was expected to be deliver. “The baby was 10 lbs and she said the baby had to get oxygen and the child died,” a relative of the woman noted. “It is because of their carelessness there making all these things happen,” she added.
The patients are calling on the Ministry of Health to dispatch a team to Mabaruma to investigate the operations of the hospital. The Mabaruma Regional Hospital serves several communities including Kumaka, Barabina Hill, Hosororo Hill, Wanaina and Wauna as well as several riverain communities.
