Family seeks answers after newborn dies at hospital
A Delmore Park family is still trying to pick up the pieces after their baby, Remiel Radcliffe, died at the Tambo Memorial Hospital on January 21.
The parents of the child, Louisa Radcliffe and Johnathan Wapad, said they are devastated, as Louisa went to the hospital to give birth and came back with a corpse.
The baby was born on January 13.
“I came out of the bathroom screaming as my water broke on the toilet. As I was screaming, I told one of the nurses the baby is coming. One of the sisters then told me I must pinch because it’s not the maternity ward,” Louisa explained.
The mother said the nurses of the ward did not assist her enough, adding she wasn’t monitored adequately before the birth.
“I then ended up giving birth at 02:35 on the floor while I was on my knees in Ward 7A. I couldn’t make it to the bed. I picked her up and tried to cover her with the gown I was wearing.
“The nurses only brought sheets and a wheelchair after she was stitched and had to go from Ward 7A to Ward 7B,” she said.
Louisa explained there was a meeting between the baby’s family members and stakeholders of the hospital on February 4, where the diagnosis of the baby’s death was given as necrotising enterocolitis (NEC), a disease that affects the intestines of premature infants, and sepsis.
“When reading about NEC, this diagnosis is only made between two to four weeks post-delivery. We still don’t know what went wrong. I wanted to request a post-mortem for my own peace of mind. However, we were told that could only be done privately and we don’t have the finances to do it now,” Louisa added.
She also appealed to those in Ward 7 during the incident to come forward and confirm what happened.
Louisa added she is going to report the nurses in question to the nursing council.
“They must be held accountable for their actions. I don’t want this to happen to anybody else. We waited six years for this baby.”
A memorial service was held for Remiel on February 10 at the family’s home.
Tambo Memorial Hospital CEO Zenzo Ndabula said: “The hospital regrets the loss of life as a result of severe illness, which was explained to the family. The hospital listened to the version of the patient in relation to the version of the nurses.
“The hospital has offered the family access to the patient records and released the baby to the family to exercise their right to do a post-mortem.”
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