Pampierstad family seeks answers for son’s death at hospital
It’s been a month since a 21-month-old baby died at the Hartswater Hospital in the Northern Cape — and his family is still seeking answers. The father, Neo Kelepe, alleges that the hospital failed to put his son on a ventilation machine, despite being aware that he needed it. He accuses the hospital of negligence. Kelepe says the hospital failed to offer specialised care for the baby.
“The doctors told the nurses, they even wrote on his file that the boy should be taken to x-ray, then after he should be put on oxygen because he was having difficulty breathing. But the nurses never did that. It was on Sunday. On Monday, the doctors came, they checked, they did the same thing and said, can you put the child on oxygen and also take him to x-ray so we can see what is eating him inside, they never did that.”
The baby boy was admitted in Hartswater Hospital on the 8th of June, and five days later, he passed away. His father says his death has taken its toll on the family. Lekepe says her son’s mother is unable to accept what happened.
“It’s a trauma to her. Every night she cries. It is something I can’t bear. I also can’t focus on daily basis because I feel like I have failed him also. I should have taken another route to get him special medical attention. But I didn’t do that because I trusted a public hospital. So we are going though a lot at the moment.”
The family says it will seek legal advice about their son’s untimely death. Head of Communications in the Northern Cape Health Department, Lulu Mxekexo, declined to comment on the matter.
Source: eNCA
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