As maternal mortality rate increases in the Country, more and more patients are been abandoned at the Princess Christian Maternity Hospital.
One recent case is one 30 year-old Isatu Conteh who was dumped at the Cottage hospital half dead by her husband and other relatives a couple of days ago; on the suspicion that she might not survive.
The Chief Medical Officer at PCMH Dr. I. D Thorlie, took me to ward four at the hospital where the abandoned patient was admitted; and narrated how she was brought to the hospital in deep pain and in their effort to admit her the husband one Gibril Turay and other relatives disappeared in thin air .
He said they had to go the extra mile to perform an emergency operation; since the woman was between life and death, as she was carrying a dead baby.
Narrating the gravity of the case, Dr. Thorlie disclosed that this was a ‘septic one’ in which the womb of the woman was discovered to be almost damage. After performing surgery to remove the still birth, he said, the whole theatre was colonized with offensive odor as a result of the perforated womb.
He confirmed that the remains of the baby are yet to be buried as no one has claimed ownership of it.
In an interview with Isatu Conteh at ward four where she is currently admitted, she expressed dissatisfaction over the inhuman treatment given to her by her family members who abandoned her at that hospital unconscious. She was lying there so dispirited with no one to either look after her or to help her; except for the nurses who would normally give her a helping hand.
She stated that she was suffering from both psychological and physical pain as her husband and relatives abandoned her at the time she needed them most.
Isatu maintained that she used to transact business in Waterloo, where she was attending clinic but never detected any symptom of still birth until when she was in labor.
Dr. Thorlie further explained that since they abandoned her, they only returned after few days with some burial kits; but they were perplexed to learn that the woman was alive and kicking and without wasting time, they ran away with the kits and never returned to see the condition of the patient.
He noted that they have been receiving similar cases but that they have been doing their best to contain it; adding that Government should come up with a Health Finance Scheme to make quality health service accessible to all free of charge.
By Solomon Rogers