By: Thabo Molelekwa<\/p>\n
Lebohang Manyaka recently gave birth to a baby boy at Germiston\u2019s Bertha Gxowa Hospital.<\/p>
Almost two weeks later, Manyaka still had not seen her child and no one at the hospital could give her a clear answer about where her baby was until she was called to collect his body.<\/p>\n
Manyaka said she gave birth to a baby boy via Cesarean Section at the hospital on January 31.<\/p>
The next morning, when Manyaka asked to see her child, she claimed a doctor told her the child had been transferred to Natalspruit Hospital.<\/p>\n
Manyaka said that a subsequent doctor told her that the child had died, but she claimed that her patient file said that the child was to be discharged at 7pm on February 1.<\/p>\n
\u201cI gave birth to a baby boy which I haven\u2019t seen up to date,\u201d said Manyaka about two weeks after the birth.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe hospital does not want to tell me the truth about the whereabouts of my child.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll I want is my child, it does not matter if he is alive or dead, but as a family we want him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just days later and after Health-e News began looking into the case, Manyaka received a call from Bertha Gxowa Hospital to come and collect her child.<\/p>\n
When she and her husband, Karabo Rachidi arrived, they said a health worker asked if they were there to see the child.<\/p>\n
Instead of being ushered into a ward, the couple were escorted to the mortuary to claim the baby boy\u2019s body, Manyaka said.<\/p>\n
Manyaka added that they were asked for DNA samples to confirm that the child was hers.<\/p>\n
Within hours, she was given results confirming the child\u2019s identity but said she remains suspicious of the test results.<\/p>\n
The family is now demanding to know how this could happen and has threatened legal action against the Department of Health.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to take the hospital to court,\u201d said Rachidi.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to know why they were hiding my child in the first place.\u201d<\/p>\n
Manyaka has vowed to seek justice for her dead child.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will not rest until we find out the truth from the hospital about what they actually did to my child,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
According to the Bertha Gxowa Hospital\u2019s quality assurance manager, Octavia Mngadi, the matter has been escalated to the hospital\u2019s CEO.<\/p>\n
Gauteng Department of Health head of communications Prince Hamnca has confirmed that the department has opened up an investigation into the case.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Gauteng Department of Health has instituted an investigation into the matter and sent a team from the quality assurance unit to Bertha Gxowa Hospital to investigate the allegations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cDepending on the outcome of the investigations, if necessary, disciplinary processes will be followed.\u201d \u2013\u00a0Health-e News<\/a>.<\/p>\n