Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony yesterday said his ministry will be conducting a thorough probe into the two maternal deaths which occurred at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation over the weekend.
In separate statements on Saturday night and yesterday, the hospital said two mothers died as a result of complications.
In the first case, a 40-year-old maternity patient from Region Six died on Saturday at the Ocean View Infectious Diseases Hospital. The woman was initially a patient at the New Amsterdam Hospital but was transferred.
In the second case which occurred yesterday, the hospital disclosed the death of a 19–year old female and the stillbirth of her first twin.
None of the victims was named due to strict confidentiality agreements in the health system, GPHC Public Relations Officer Chelauna Providence and the Minister explained.
“The GPHC expresses sincerest condolences to the family of the deceased and will make every effort to provide all the necessary support during this difficult time to render any assistance and information needed.
“The GPHC is appealing to the public to respect the confidentiality of the deceased and her family, and to allow them to mourn their unfortunate loss peacefully”, a statement from the GPHC said.
Two other women and their unborn children died recently at the GPHC raising concerns about the quality of their care.
Rashanna Dindayal, 31, and her unborn child died on October 20 at the Georgetown Public Hospi-tal (GPHC). Rashanna, a mother of two from Lodge, apparently collapsed at the hospital while making her way to the washroom unattended. She was said to have suffered a severe head wound and died thereafter.
The dead woman’s mother, Shairma Dindayal told Stabroek News that around 10 am on October 20th she received a call from the GPHC saying her daughter was in a critical condition and to go to the hospital urgently. When she arrived she was put to sit downstairs where she was initially told by a doctor that Rashanna’s heart rate and blood count were low. At this point she said that the doctor said nothing about her daughter’s fall. According to Shairma, the doctor told her that her daughter “can’t make it”.
Shairma then questioned the doctor’s view because she recalled that on Wednesday, October 19th after her daughter began experiencing labour pains, she was rushed to the hospital and admitted at around 3 am. She said that around 7 am that day, Rashanna called her and said, ”Mommy I’m 4 cm dilated, and I will call you because the hospital don’t have any internet.” After that she was positive that her daughter was in a good condition and she questioned how all of a sudden she could have deteriorated. Shairma was eventually told that a blood vessel had burst in her daughter’s head and that she had passed away.
The hospital has since said that Rashanna only had two pre-natal visits – suggesting that she had not been attentive to her health – and that she had fallen after suffering cardiac arrest.
In the second case, a 39-year-old mother of five, Navita Maraj, and her unborn child died at the GPHC around 1:30 am on October 29. According to her husband, Phillip James, she had been administered Oxytocin tablets to induce labour. Based on his account, because she was considered a high-risk patient and as there was an unspecified complication, it had been agreed that she would undergo a Caesarean section. There is now a fundamental disagreement between him and the attending doctor over whether it was a C-section or a traditional delivery that she had agreed upon.
The hospital has not provided more information to the families on these two deaths.
