New Mom's recent ordeal opens can of worms

Multiple women on social have come forward to complain about the poor service that they have received from Princess Marina Hospital, particularly from the labour ward.

This is after one user shared her ordeal about her experience in which she was allegedly neglected by a midwife to the point where she gave birth all by herself.

Narrating the ordeal via social media platform Tiktok, the lady explained that she was admitted at Marina Hospital when she had dilated by two centimetres.

Upon arrival at the hospital she was sent to the delivery ward where she saw the worst side of the hospital.

A midwife told her that she was misbehaving when she screamed because she was in pain. At that moment, she said, she was giving birth and calling for help in distress, but the midwife just sat on a chair outside the ward.

Her screams fell on deaf ears until she eventually gave birth alone and her newborn son fell onto the bed. According to her, a doctor came and attended to her new born baby and assured her that the baby was in good condition.

She said the midwife was so forceful and rough when helping her and uttered the words; “I will leave you and you will die alone and after that I will document that you have died,” the tiktok user said, noting that these were the words that crushed her.

The user went on to reveal that her saving grace was when the doctor came and took over from her.

After this video went viral, the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Health, Dr Christopher Nyanga released a press statement indicating that the Ministry regrets the unfortunate incident.

Dr Nyanga stated that they expect good customer service to always be at the core of the Ministry’s interactions with all its patients, and that the said incident did not in any way represent the ethics and ethos of the Government

of Botswana, the Ministry or Princess Marina Hospital itself.

"Such behaviour by a staff member or any health professional for that matter, would be unethical, unprofessional and unacceptable by all standards.

“The Ministry therefore, apologises for the alleged incident and assures members of the public that it will investigate the issue to the very end. If indeed the allegations turn out to be true, appropriate action will be taken against the culprit(s).”

The aggrieved mother later gave an update on her social media platform, saying that the manager from the hospital had called to apologise to her and that she had asked to set a date that they can all meet and iron out the issue.

All the mother wants however, if for action to be taken against the midwife as she put her and her son at risk. She said that giving birth prematurely should have warranted that she be given proper care as both their lives were at risk but that she was neglected.

Other users on tiktok came forward to share similar experiences at the hands of nurses at different hospitals and clinics across the country. One revealed that after giving birth when she told the nurse who was assisting her that the follow-up stitching was painful, the nurse instead threatened that she would leave her without finishing the stitching as the lady was not cooperating.

Furthermore, she alleged that the nurse added that the pain and scar of the stitches would forever serve as a reminder to her that she was not listening to the nurse when she was told to just sit still. To this day, the lady said, she still feels pain and has not completely healed from that ordeal at Mafitlhakgosi Clinic in 2019.

Another tiktok user, also prompted by the first user's video which went viral, stated that after having a miscarriage at Princess Marina Hospital, the midwife asked her why she was crying and if the baby daddy said he would leave her if the child died.

The Botswana Nurses Union (BONU) would also release a statement stating that BONU does not condone any form of unprofessional behaviour by its members. The statement noted that in the light of the Princess Marina Hospital incident, the union was working around the clock to investigate the matter in order to determine the course of action.

"BONU kindly appeals to its members, stakeholders and the public to remain calm as the union will get to the bottom of the matter and intervene accordingly."