The Mpumalanga Department of Health (DoH) is investigating the death of a 28-year-old woman after she was admitted to Matikwana Hospital in Mkhuhlu to give birth on Sunday, January 4.

Nsuku Nicolette Mahlalela, from Cunningmoor B Trust in the Bushbuckridge Local Municipality, was admitted at around 17:00 and her family visited the hospital the following morning.

“She was doing well and we went to check on her again at 13:00, when we were told that she had been taken to theatre where she had given birth. We left and returned to the hospital around 18:00 and discovered that the nurses had forgotten to feed the baby,” said Nsuku’s brother, Siyabonga Mahlalela.

A nurse confessed that the baby was born around 13:00 and that they forgot to feed him for a full five hours after he was born. I think the nurse told us this by mistake, but they rushed to the nursery where they asked for milk as well as a drip for him. We recorded the conversation,” added Mahlalela.

He said the family was not allowed to see Nsuku and they had to leave in order to get transport home.

“Later that night, the hospital called us back. We were instructed to come immediately as we had to sign some documents for a blood transfusion, as it seemed my sister had lost too much blood during surgery,” said Mahlalela.

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The family hired a car and rushed to the hospital, but to their surprise, they were not given any documents to sign. He said they were taken to see Nsuku and found her unresponsive and on an oxygen machine displaying 0.

“One of the nurses told us that my sister complained about feeling dizzy after the operation and that they had to take her back to the theatre,” said Mahlalela.

At around 07:00 the following morning, the hospital called to inform the family that Nsuku had died at 03:00.

“We were told that the hospital was taking her body to Mapulaneng Hospital in Bushbuckridge, where the pathologist would conduct a post-mortem. The family has taken the baby boy home where he is being taken care of.”

The family is concerned that Nsuku was operated on at least twice and was due for a third operation when she passed away that night.

“The hospital told us that Nsuku’s blood pressure was too high and that the blood transfusion was conducted four times. They said her blood pressure started to drop, but what was the reason for them to check her blood pressure if they knew that they did nothing wrong during the surgery,” asked Mahlalela.

DoH spokesperson Dumisani Malamule told Mpumalanga News that Nsuku’s death and allegations against the nurses at Matikwana Hospital were under investigation.

“The matter raised against the conduct of the said employees will be looked at during an investigation. The matter regarding the late Nsuku is an isolated case, hence the investigation. The department is upholding ethical medical practice and ensuring the provision of quality healthcare services to all,” said Malamule.

“We care about our patients, and we also practice Batho Pele principles. The deceased patient was operated on with valid legal consent, which was fully signed by her. Currently, the cause of death has not been identified and the hospital is waiting for the post-mortem results,” explained Malamule.

He added that Mapulaneng forensic pathology is overseen by the DoH and that the results of the autopsy would be authentic.