Where's our kin?: Fury after another body mix-up at mortuary

Mourners converged on Tuesday, at the late John Cheruiyot's home in Tegunot village in Mauche, Njoro, for a funeral without a body. This followed a mix-up at the Nakuru Level Five Hospital that saw the body of the deceased missing from the mortuary. The deceased was admitted on August 15 but died the following day. On Monday, the family visited the hospital to transport the body home ahead of the burial, only to be handed the wrong body bearing a similar name. "When we confirmed that the body was not our deceased kin, they brought us a wrong body, still bearing a similar name. We still refused, and the third time, the mortuary attendants brought us a third body and insisted it was the one, which we vehemently refused," said Samson Lang'at, a son of the deceased. After the confrontation, one of the attendants admitted there was a mix-up and that the hospital might have handed their kin's body to another family from Molo. "It does not make sense because even the deceased, whom they suspect might have been caught up in this mix-up, does not even bear similar names at all. The fact that they were quick to tell us that they suspected that they had handed over the body to a family from Molo on 19th is even more worrying," said Lang'at. Unaware of the happenings, mourners yesterday streamed into the homestead only to find a baffled family. "We did not even know how to inform the mourners of the happenings. The hospital informed us that they are taking up the matter and that they would get back to us once they find the body," said Kipng'eno Kerina, Cheruiyot's brother. The residents are now demanding accountability from the county government, warning that the management of the facility is wanting. A similar incident was reported barely five months ago when the body of a seven-month-old baby disappeared at the hospital in February. The body is yet to be produced. "This incident shows the laxity and state of hospitals within the county. This critical oversight is happening right within the county's largest health facility, and the county has yet to get in touch with the family," said a resident. Last week, the family, which buried another kin two months ago, raised Sh38,000 during a funds drive to cater for the funeral expenses. "The same coffin and clothes that we had carried ended up in the wrong body, which the hospital insisted was the one. Now, who will cater for all the expenses besides the food and other legal processes which we have to follow until the deceased is finally buried?"said Festus Ngeno, a neighbour. He told the county government to cater for the expenses incurred. Former Mauche MCA Philip Rotich blamed mismanagement to the laxity in the hospital. "The health docket is critical, yet it is one of the most mismanaged within the county. A proper system with good managers should be put in place to ensure people get the right services. There is a growing mistrust between the public and the hospital because of laxity and negligence incidents," he said. Efforts by The Standard to reach the hospital management were futile as phone calls went unanswered, with the management and the county leadership holding in a crisis meeting over the issue.

Where's our kin?: Fury after another body mix-up at mortuary

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Where's our kin?: Fury after another body mix-up at mortuary

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