A Pretoria daughter is demanding answers from Life Eugene Marais Hospital after alleging she discovered maggots in her elderly mother’s mouth during an ICU visit while the patient was ventilated.

Lindi van Rensburg says the incident was deeply traumatic and has left her questioning ICU oral-care standards, infection control and the hospital’s communication with the family.

She also claims her mother’s Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) and Living Will were not handled in line with her mother’s wishes, and says she is still waiting for clear feedback on her formal complaints.

Her mother, Martha Magdalena van Rensburg, later passed away in the hospital on Friday, February 13.

“I took my mother to the Eugene Marais Hospital on January 13, 2026, because she was very lethargic. She does have a Living Will, but I did not bring it with me. I was not planning on taking her to the hospital that day.

“I told them that she does not want to go on a ventilator. I said I will sign a DNR. They did not have a bed for her, so they told me they were looking to transfer her to another hospital, but later told me that they would be taking her to ICU 5 around 19h00.”

She said she left when her mother was still in the trauma unit.

“At 03h07 the next morning, someone from ICU 1 phoned and said that they were going to put her on a ventilator. I told her that that is against her wishes.

“Her answer was that “I am only calling to inform you that that is what we are going to do.” On her medical statement, it says that the ventilator was put in at Trauma, so the medical aid does not cover it, as it has to be done in the ICU.

“I phoned ICU 1 the next morning four times to ask about my mother. The first three times, they said she was not there. I phoned Trauma, but she wasn’t there either.

“The fourth time I called ICU 1, they said, “Oh. She is here. I went on January 14 to sign a DNR. The form was already filled in and signed by the doctor, as I had phoned the ward before I arrived to say the papers needed to be complete and signed by a doctor by the time I got there. When I got there, the DNR was completed, and I could sign it. There was no incident for a few days.

“The doctor phoned me once on the 14th. When I phoned back, he had already left. Since then, I have not received a single call from the doctor.”

Lindi says on January 20, she was told by the sister in charge that my mother was put on antibiotics because she had Ecoli. She added that during this time, her mother’s infection count went up to 200.

“She was put on more antibiotics. On Wednesday, February 4th, at 15h17, Dr Malefhalo phoned to say that Dr Mushi had told him to phone me to tell me that they were going to do a tracheotomy.

“I told him that it was against her wishes. He asked if she has a Living Will, and I said she does and that I will bring it as soon as possible. I arrived with her Living Will just before 18h00 that day. I had to fill in a new DNR because the previous DNR that was completed by the doctor had a mistake in.”

Lindi said she gave the hospital her mother’s living will, and they made her a copy. Rekord is in possession of a copy of Van Rensburg’s Living Will.

“I went to stand by my mother’s side and saw something moving in her mouth. I took off my glasses as I only wear them for driving.

“I saw that my mother’s mouth was filled with maggots. It was coming out of her mouth and had pushed her mouth wide open.

“In utter shock, I asked the sister why my mother’s mouth was full of worms. She looked at me, surprised, and said, “I don’t know. We are pumping her stomach.”

“I was speechless.”

She also said she phoned the case manager the next morning, but the case manager said she could not get involved.

“I spoke to the complaints manager, who said that she would take it up with the ward manager. Spoke to the ward Manager, and she said she would report it. They moved my mother to a glass room and cleaned her mouth.”

But Lindi said another maggot was found inside her mother’s mouth the day after the shocking discovery.

Lindi lodged a complaint on HelloPeter on February 6 and received an immediate response requesting her details, but has not heard back since.

She later met with the doctor and ward manager on February 9, where she was told the “maggots” she reported were actually caused by “a fly” and that the ventilator would not be removed and antibiotics would continue.

Lindi says she was also told she may not contact the matron directly and must follow internal channels, despite having already reported the matter and received no feedback.

Life Eugene Marais Hospital Manager, Barend Erasmus, said they are aware of the family’s concerns and confirmed that the hospital has met with them to listen to and understand their complaints.

“We again extend our sincere condolences to the family and recognise that the loss of a loved one is deeply distressing. The hospital has offered the family access to appropriate emotional support during this difficult time,” he said.

According to the hospital, an internal investigation has been initiated in line with its clinical governance, quality assurance, and infection prevention and control processes.

“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 said.

The hospital added that anyone who is not satisfied with the care they receive is encouraged to follow the formal complaints process so concerns can be managed in line with internal policies and appropriate feedback can be provided.

Life Healthcare said it remains committed to patient safety, ethical care, and respectful, transparent engagement with families.

Van Rensburg told Rekord last week that she met with the hospital management.

“I was told the meeting should have happened the previous week, but that the correct steps were not followed to escalate the matter to management at the time, and that any negligence would be dealt with internally.

“I asked whether they would do an autopsy, but they said no because my mother’s death was considered to be from natural causes. They offered me counselling, which I accepted. With the manager’s permission, I recorded the meeting.

Van Rensburg requested a private autopsy and blood tests.

“The manager phoned me yesterday and offered to cover the autopsy costs, but I told him I had already arranged it privately. He also emailed to confirm they would pay for the autopsy.”

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