A family is accusing nurses at the Kuntenase Government Hospital in the Ashanti region of negligence after the death of their two-year-old daughter.
Paulina Opoku was on admission at the hospital and in need of blood but several attempts by her father Joel Opoku Bediako to donate blood, however, failed because the lab was closed for service, according to the nurses on duty.
Member of Parliament for Bantama, Daniel Okyem Aboagye intervened before finally the father’s blood was taken but the girl died moments after.
The MP who shared the chronology of events at the medical facility on Facebook said nurses must begin to take their jobs seriously.
Below is what the MP wrote on his Facebook page
Another Nurses’ Negligence kills a 2-Year old girl at Kuntenase Govt. Hospital in Ashanti Region
Oh my God. What is going on? Another needless loss of life by nurses’ negligence at Kuntenase government hospital in Ashanti region today – 31/07/2018.
This is how it all happened. I received repeated calls from Joel Opoku Bediako – the father of late little girl Paulina Owusu – to intervene and help save his dying daughter from the nurses’ negligence and bad customer service.
Joel, who resides in Adoato in Bantama Constituency received a call about his daughter’s admission at Kuntenase government hospital and the need to do an immediate blood transfusion to save his little Paulina’s life.
He quickly rushed from Bantama to Kuntenase. Joel was asked to donate blood to save his little girl but when he got to the lab, the nurses told him the lab was closed and so he cannot be helped.
No bed syndrome has now moved to closed lab syndrome and no amount of pleading will receive the nurse’s empathy or sympathy to hear Joel out.
Joel was even rudely asked to take his daughter away if he couldn’t wait. After several unsuccessful attempts at getting the nurses on duty to help, Joel calls his Bantama MP (Daniel Okyem Aboagye) to intervene but the nurses won’t talk to me and I stood on the phone for several minutes waiting to see if anybody will speak to me but none did.
I quickly told Joel to hang up the phone to think about the next steps. I could hear him crying….please save my daughter, please save my daughter, please my daughter is dying.
Joel quickly changed from the begging mode to the pushing mode but I had to get off the phone to think.
I quickly recorded a message and sent it for him and the nurses whose negligence was killing the little 2-year-old Paulina to listen.
I then called Joel to play my message to the nurses to help and as a result they called in a student lab technician to come and assist. They finally drew Joel’s blood for his daughter but when they got there it was too late – speaking from a layman’s point of view, little Paulina had died as a result of the nurses’ delays, negligence and refusal for the Bantama MP’s timely plea for help.
Listen to the helpless mother cry for her baby’s life. The mother’s cry will touch you as never before. Listen to the mother’s cry to understand how our nurse’s negligence continue to take life needlessly.
We have now moved from no bed to neglecting a pregnant woman with 3-kids to die in eastern region to killing another pregnant woman for the alleged non-payment of Doctors’ motivation fees at Suntreso Hospital in Bantama to Killing of 2-year old Paulina for closed laboratory.
This is completely unacceptable and we must stop it. You need to be a citizen if you don’t love your work you must leave it or else do it well.
Brighten your corner at all times regardless of pay and please help the government help us by doing your best at all times.
I personally spoke to the Senior Nurse on duty (Atta Prempeh) who promised to give me his phone number and that of his Doctor on duty who was absent at the time of this entire incident.
More details later but you may contact the parents and I at the following numbers Bantama MP = 0541716391 Joel = 0558579508 Beatrice or Sister = 0248752095 In terms of next steps, I am getting them a lawyer to assist them and to ensure that no one else loses their life to closed labs. #mayhersoulrestinpeace #rejectclosedlapsyndrom #rejectbadnursesattitudes Written By: Daniel Okyem Aboagye Hon. MP Bantama”
Meanwhile, the district director for health, Dr Berima Gyimatey has pledged that the claims of the family will be probed thoroughly. Speaking on the Starr Midday News, Dr. Gyimatey said he was not at the facility when the issue happened but the matter has been brought to his attention.
Source: Ghana/Starrfmonline.com/103.5FM