A couple is devastated after they took their baby, who was suffering from dehydration, to hospital and the child returned home with one arm.
Last Gumiremhete and Panganayi Dziwakwe, originally from Zimbabwe, have lived in Mdantsane for over a decade and have three children.
Their last-born, Alvin Dziwakwe, turned one last Friday. Alvin was admitted to Cecilia Makiwane Hospital (CMH) at around midnight on November 26.
“On the 27th they told us he suffered from... dehydration and it was affecting his kidneys and brain, so he was placed in ICU,” Dziwakwe said.
One arm apparently became infected, and had to be amputated. Provincial health spokesman Siyanda Manana said the baby had been properly care for.
“The department respects doctor and patient information. We cannot disclose the patient’s information. There are protocols which must be followed.
“But it’s safe to say that the doctors and nurses at CMH took good care of the patient,” he said.
Dziwakwe said hospital staff kept inserting a drip in different parts of their child’s body, including in the knee and head. However, they had initially placed it in the baby’s right arm until the arm swelled. “The hand got cold; there was no circulation,” said Alvin’s father.
His mother, who had been in a different ward in the hospital during Alvin’s stay, said she went to see him in ICU and found his arm elevated. She said when she questioned the nurses, they told her the arm was swollen from the drip, and they were trying to restore circulation.
At that time she had noticed Alvin’s index finger had turned blue and looked “like it could burst”.
When that did not work she was asked to sign a form to allow doctors to check “if his veins were functional and remove the finger”. She signed the form and her child underwent the procedure. However, she said they did not remove the finger and they did not stitch up the child afterwards, saying the arm was too swollen.
Doctors allegedly told the mother that Alvin would retain full use of his arms and the rest of his fingers because there was nothing wrong with his veins. Gumiremhete said her son remained there with the open wound for days. Shortly after being stitched up, the rest of his hand and arm turned black.
“Then they said the hand and arm would no longer function and asked me to sign to have them removed. It was rotting; it was only the skin left. We had no choice, we were scared the infection would spread,” she said.
Dziwakwe described his son’s fingers as looking like “biltong, like they would break”.
“I believe it’s their negligence on the drip that got him like that. My son only has one hand now,” he said.
The two unemployed parents spoke to the Dispatch from their NU15 home. Gumiremhete, carrying Alvin whose right arm was amputated above the elbow, was emotional when asked how she felt. “This is very painful to me. This was caused by a drip; he had no problem with his arm. I overheard nurses saying they forgot to remove the drip on time.
“That’s what breaks my heart; this was preventable. Now that he doesn’t have an arm, it’s going to be difficult for him to do what other kids do.” — vuyiswav@dispatch.co.za
Baby loses arm at hospital
Last Gumiremhete and Panganayi Dziwakwe, originally from Zimbabwe, have lived in Mdantsane for over a decade and have three children.
Their last-born, Alvin Dziwakwe, turned one last Friday. Alvin was admitted to Cecilia Makiwane Hospital (CMH) at around midnight on November 26.
“On the 27th they told us he suffered from... dehydration and it was affecting his kidneys and brain, so he was placed in ICU,” Dziwakwe said.
One arm apparently became infected, and had to be amputated. Provincial health spokesman Siyanda Manana said the baby had been properly care for.
“The department respects doctor and patient information. We cannot disclose the patient’s information. There are protocols which must be followed.
“But it’s safe to say that the doctors and nurses at CMH took good care of the patient,” he said.
Dziwakwe said hospital staff kept inserting a drip in different parts of their child’s body, including in the knee and head. However, they had initially placed it in the baby’s right arm until the arm swelled. “The hand got cold; there was no circulation,” said Alvin’s father.
His mother, who had been in a different ward in the hospital during Alvin’s stay, said she went to see him in ICU and found his arm elevated. She said when she questioned the nurses, they told her the arm was swollen from the drip, and they were trying to restore circulation.
At that time she had noticed Alvin’s index finger had turned blue and looked “like it could burst”.
When that did not work she was asked to sign a form to allow doctors to check “if his veins were functional and remove the finger”. She signed the form and her child underwent the procedure. However, she said they did not remove the finger and they did not stitch up the child afterwards, saying the arm was too swollen.
Doctors allegedly told the mother that Alvin would retain full use of his arms and the rest of his fingers because there was nothing wrong with his veins. Gumiremhete said her son remained there with the open wound for days. Shortly after being stitched up, the rest of his hand and arm turned black.
“Then they said the hand and arm would no longer function and asked me to sign to have them removed. It was rotting; it was only the skin left. We had no choice, we were scared the infection would spread,” she said.
Dziwakwe described his son’s fingers as looking like “biltong, like they would break”.
“I believe it’s their negligence on the drip that got him like that. My son only has one hand now,” he said.
The two unemployed parents spoke to the Dispatch from their NU15 home. Gumiremhete, carrying Alvin whose right arm was amputated above the elbow, was emotional when asked how she felt. “This is very painful to me. This was caused by a drip; he had no problem with his arm. I overheard nurses saying they forgot to remove the drip on time.
“That’s what breaks my heart; this was preventable. Now that he doesn’t have an arm, it’s going to be difficult for him to do what other kids do.” — vuyiswav@dispatch.co.za
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