A Pretoria woman has alleged that her mother’s ‘do not resuscitate’ (DNR) order and living will were ignored by hospital staff, and claims she found maggots in her mother’s mouth days before she passed away.

Lindi van Rensburg says she is still waiting for clear feedback on her formal complaints following the death of her mother, Martha Magdalena van Rensburg, at Life Eugene Marais Hospital on February 13, reports Pretoria Rekord.

A conflict of wishes

The ordeal began on January 13, when Van Rensburg took her mother to the hospital due to extreme lethargy. Although her mother had a living will, Van Rensburg did not have it with her as she had not planned on a hospital admission that day.

“I told them that she does not want to go on a ventilator and that I would sign a DNR,” she said. “They did not have a bed for her, so they told me they were looking to transfer her, but later said she would be moved to ICU 5 around 19:00.”

Van Rensburg left while her mother was still in the trauma unit. However, at 03:07 the following morning, she received a call from ICU 1 stating they intended to put her mother on a ventilator.

When she protested that this went against her mother’s wishes, she claims the caller replied: “I am only calling to inform you that that is what we are going to do.”

Medical statements later indicated the ventilator was inserted in the trauma unit, a move Van Rensburg says led to medical aid refusing cover, as the procedure is required to be performed in the ICU.

Confusion continued the next morning.

Van Rensburg called ICU 1 four times; three times she was told her mother was not there. On the fourth call, staff confirmed her presence.

She arrived on January 14 to sign a DNR, which she says was already filled in and signed by a doctor at her request to ensure the paperwork was ready. Following this, she claims she did not receive another call from the doctor for several days.

The shocking discovery

On January 20, Van Rensburg claims she was informed that her mother had contracted E. coli and was being treated with antibiotics as her infection count rose to 200.

On February 4, she was allegedly told doctors intended to perform a tracheotomy. Again, she refused, citing her mother’s living will, which she delivered to the hospital that evening.

During this visit, she was required to sign a new DNR because the previous version contained an error.

It was during this visit that Van Rensburg made a harrowing discovery.

“I went to stand by my mother’s side and saw something moving in her mouth,” she said. “I took off my glasses, as I only wear them for driving, and saw that my mother’s mouth was filled with maggots. They were coming out of her mouth and had pushed it wide open.”

When she asked the sister in charge why there were worms in her mother’s mouth, the nurse reportedly replied: “I don’t know. We are pumping her stomach.”

Despite the mouth being cleaned and her mother being moved to a glass room, Ms van Rensburg claims another maggot was found the following day.

Hospital investigation launched

After lodging a complaint on HelloPeter on February 6, Van Rensburg met with the doctor and ward manager on February 9.

She alleges she was told the ‘maggots’ were actually caused by ‘a fly’ and that the ventilator and antibiotics would not be discontinued. She further claims she was instructed not to contact the matron directly, despite receiving no feedback through internal channels.

Barend Erasmus, Manager of Life Eugene Marais Hospital, confirmed the hospital is aware of the family’s concerns and has met with them.

“We again extend our sincere condolences to the family and recognise that the loss of a loved one is deeply distressing,” he said, adding that the hospital has offered the family emotional support.

According to the hospital, an internal investigation has been initiated regarding clinical governance and infection control.

“The necessary steps will be taken once this review has been concluded. While the review is ongoing, we are not in a position to comment further,” Erasmus stated.

Life Healthcare maintained it remains committed to patient safety and ethical care.

Van Rensburg recently met with management again, where she was told that negligence would be dealt with internally.

Although the hospital initially declined an autopsy, stating the death was due to natural causes, they later offered to cover the costs after Van Rensburg arranged for a private autopsy and blood tests to be conducted.

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