Baby sustains a cut on his face during a C-section operation
A Vosloorus family seeks accountability after their baby boy suffered an injury during his birth at Heidelberg Hospital early this year.
The six-month-old baby sustained a cut on his cheek near the mouth during a C-section operation on March 5.
The father, Kamogelo Magalemele, said they went to the hospital together with the mother of the child to lay a complaint at the hospital.
He said they were not pleased with the hospital’s response.
According to Magalemele, they were told their matter was not serious and that they only attend to cases of death.
“They said the responsible health practitioners were given a warning. I questioned the weight of the warning against the huge scar on my baby’s face, which he will grow with.
“The wound was big. You could see the white layer underneath his skin, it has closed up now but the scar is visible.”
He said they bought medication for the child as the hospital did not offer any treatment for the wound.
His grandmother, Dories Magalemele, said she was surprised to see her grandchild coming home for the first time with a wound on his cheek.
She said she is responsible for looking after the child since both his parents are working. The past six months were very hard for the grandmother who had to watch her grandson in pain all the time.
“Watching my grandson in pain broke my heart. It is painful to welcome a child to the world in this state. The hospital has created a horrible experience for my grandchild.
“It was worse when I had to bath him. When I mistakenly touched the wound with the face cloth he would start crying out loud.
“What hurts me the most is that I could not do anything about it, I used to be very stressed until he started healing,” the grandmother.
She said they demand that the hospital compensates the family for the trauma and pain.
Kwara Kekana of the Johannesburg Department of Health told Kathorus MAIL that the department is still looking into the matter.
