The head of one of the most sued state hospitals in the province has blamed pregnant rural women for a spate of birthing disasters at the hospital.
In an exclusive interview, the CEO of Mthatha General hospital, Dr Thozama Madubela, accused the pregnant women of faking labour contractions so that they could freeload off the hospital and save transport costs.
She also accused pregnant women of using a traditional muti made from baboon urine which interfered with the birthing process.
Meanwhile, the number of infants who have died or been disabled or disfigured during childbirth at the complex – which comprises the Mthatha General and Nelson Mandela Academic hospital has been raising alarm.
In the five months between January 2010 and May 2010, 180 babies were reported to have died in the hospital complex due to staff negligence, the Sunday Times has reported.
In the last two years alone, the two hospitals have been ordered to pay patients’ lawyers R37-million in medical negligence claims, according to figures released to the Dispatch by the Eastern Cape department of health.
On average, 850 children are born at the two hospitals every month.
The Mthatha complex sits at the top of a list of R162-million paid out by provincial hospitals, making it the most most sued public health institution in the province.
The overwhelming majority of medical negligence claims arose from an alleged lack of urgency from staff, which led to complications arising from delays, which left infants disabled for life.
In a 36-minute interview with the Dispatch last Thursday, Dr Thozama Madubela said that before she took up her CEO post at Mthatha General in July 2014, the complex was receiving more than 240 summons for patients’ files a month from at least one lawyer intending to sue the hospital for medical negligence.
In a feisty defence of her hospitals, Madubela accused pregnant mothers of lying about being in labour in order to secure a hospital bed.
“Our institution is full to the brim with patients who live on the outskirts of the town and on the very month a patient knows she is going to give birth she thinks she has to be nearer the hospital,” Madubela said.
“So she comes here pretending to be in labour and when we say: ‘no you are not in established labour’ she would leave but in the evening she would come again and say she is in labour.
“Those tricks are because she is from far away from the hospital and some hire transport which is cheaper during the day and very expensive in the evening.”
Madubela also put the blame for childbirth defects at the door of impoverished rural patients, whom she accused of failing to attend antenatal clinics during their pregnancy.
“At 16 weeks of pregnancy they are supposed to start attending antenatal clinic but the patients book very late for antenatal.
“But the reason for attending antenatal clinic early on is for the health institution to be able to diagnose whatever complications may arise so that there can be interventions during the nine-month pregnancy.”
Madubela also pointed to the negative impact of “cultural beliefs” held by some pregnant women
“There is a medication they usually take when they are pregnant which they say is going to assist them during delivery by accelerating the labour contractions.
“They take a medication called umchamo wemfene (baboon’s urine) which makes the stomach of the patient extremely hard.”
The tough-talking CEO said her staff were occasionally disciplined for mismanaging patients in accordance with the Batho Pele (People First) principle.
“I wouldn’t say there aren’t such behaviours from my staff because people are people, but we do deal with those employees,” Madubela said. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
Hospital CEO hits back over birthing disasters
In an exclusive interview, the CEO of Mthatha General hospital, Dr Thozama Madubela, accused the pregnant women of faking labour contractions so that they could freeload off the hospital and save transport costs.
She also accused pregnant women of using a traditional muti made from baboon urine which interfered with the birthing process.
Meanwhile, the number of infants who have died or been disabled or disfigured during childbirth at the complex – which comprises the Mthatha General and Nelson Mandela Academic hospital has been raising alarm.
In the five months between January 2010 and May 2010, 180 babies were reported to have died in the hospital complex due to staff negligence, the Sunday Times has reported.
In the last two years alone, the two hospitals have been ordered to pay patients’ lawyers R37-million in medical negligence claims, according to figures released to the Dispatch by the Eastern Cape department of health.
On average, 850 children are born at the two hospitals every month.
The Mthatha complex sits at the top of a list of R162-million paid out by provincial hospitals, making it the most most sued public health institution in the province.
The overwhelming majority of medical negligence claims arose from an alleged lack of urgency from staff, which led to complications arising from delays, which left infants disabled for life.
In a 36-minute interview with the Dispatch last Thursday, Dr Thozama Madubela said that before she took up her CEO post at Mthatha General in July 2014, the complex was receiving more than 240 summons for patients’ files a month from at least one lawyer intending to sue the hospital for medical negligence.
In a feisty defence of her hospitals, Madubela accused pregnant mothers of lying about being in labour in order to secure a hospital bed.
“Our institution is full to the brim with patients who live on the outskirts of the town and on the very month a patient knows she is going to give birth she thinks she has to be nearer the hospital,” Madubela said.
“So she comes here pretending to be in labour and when we say: ‘no you are not in established labour’ she would leave but in the evening she would come again and say she is in labour.
“Those tricks are because she is from far away from the hospital and some hire transport which is cheaper during the day and very expensive in the evening.”
Madubela also put the blame for childbirth defects at the door of impoverished rural patients, whom she accused of failing to attend antenatal clinics during their pregnancy.
“At 16 weeks of pregnancy they are supposed to start attending antenatal clinic but the patients book very late for antenatal.
“But the reason for attending antenatal clinic early on is for the health institution to be able to diagnose whatever complications may arise so that there can be interventions during the nine-month pregnancy.”
Madubela also pointed to the negative impact of “cultural beliefs” held by some pregnant women
“There is a medication they usually take when they are pregnant which they say is going to assist them during delivery by accelerating the labour contractions.
“They take a medication called umchamo wemfene (baboon’s urine) which makes the stomach of the patient extremely hard.”
The tough-talking CEO said her staff were occasionally disciplined for mismanaging patients in accordance with the Batho Pele (People First) principle.
“I wouldn’t say there aren’t such behaviours from my staff because people are people, but we do deal with those employees,” Madubela said. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
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