Man seeks answers after wife's death in childbirth

In the last few months, the Government has, through the Ministry of Health, been on an all-out campaign to have pregnant women deliver their babies in hospitals.

Citing the need to safeguard the well being of the women and their unborn children, the Government has gone a step further and waived maternity fees in all public hospitals, a move that has been praised by many and led to an increase in the number of hospital deliveries.

It is this conviction that led Michael Obiero to take his wife Lillian Aoko to Mama Lucy Kibaki Hospital for safe delivery of his second child on Friday, January 23.

What should have been a time of great joy for this family has turned into a period of mourning after Ms Aoko died soon after giving birth to a healthy baby girl.

LIFELESS BODY

Speaking to The Standard, Mr Obiero said he could not comprehend how his wife died of alleged excessive bleeding while in a hospital setting complete with delivery equipment and well-trained staff.

“If I knew Lillian was going to die in the hospital while the staff watched her, I would have organised for a midwife to come home and help her deliver safely,” the distraught widower said.

“I took her to hospital knowing they would treat her well and help her deliver safely. Instead, when I went to pick up my wife and our baby, I was given her lifeless body.”

Obiero recounted the events that transpired when he took his wife to hospital on the night she went into labour.

“We got there at around 9pm and I left her in the ward. I went back early the next morning and was surprised when the askari at the gate told me the doctors wanted to speak to me. I went straight to the ward where I had left Lillian and found a baby wrapped in her leso alone on the bed. I immediately knew something was amiss and that is when doctors broke the news to me,” he said.

The father of two says he left the hospital with his new-born daughter, who he has named after her mother. He has been taking care of her with help from his wife’s close friend.

Obiero, a casual labourer, now has to buy formula milk, which retails at about Sh1,200 per tin, to feed the baby.

“Baby Lillian uses one tin a week and this has put a real strain on my meagre earnings. I have been forced to depend on well-wishers to help me feed the baby,” he said.

Even as he struggles to raise his two children on his own, Obiero wants to know what happened to his wife who he insists died of negligence by the hospital.

“A woman who shared the ward with Lillian gave me a glimpse into what happened that night. She told me my wife gave birth on her own then started bleeding and called for help from the nurses in charge, but none responded. The woman told me Lillian bled for hours before she finally collapsed and died at 4am,” said the embittered man.

CONFLICTING REPORTS

According to the hospital’s report, Lillian died of a pulmonary embolism.

However, a preliminary post-mortem report paints a different picture.

“There are no features of pulmonary embolism. From the tests we did and a general body examination, it looks like Lillian died from excessive bleeding,” Chief Government Pathologist Johansen Oduor said.

“Her cervix was ruptured and she was very pale, meaning she had lost a lot of blood. It appears like she bled to death,” Dr Oduor said, adding that a second definite report, which involves microscopic analysis, will be out in two weeks.

Reacting to the report, the hospital’s Deputy Medical Superintendent, Musa Mohammed, told The Standard the hospital was following the matter very closely.

“We are looking at two scenarios here; it could be that the death was inevitable, meaning there was nothing much the medics could have done. If it was negligence, I can assure you that the people who were on duty that day will face due disciplinary action, even if it means de-registration from the board.

"Let us wait for the full report so we can find the best course of action,” Dr Mohammed said.