‘I discharged myself and fled’ – Another woman tells of amputation nightmare at Charlotte Maxeke

Another patient has come forward detailing another alleged botched surgery at Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital.

The Citizen last week published Voilla Ncube’s two-month ordeal at the hands of Charlotte Maxeke nurses and doctors.

According to 60-year-old diabetic Catherine Khanyeza, she was admitted to the hospital in November for a toe to be amputated. The toe started to get worse after her admission, and she was told her foot would have to be amputated just above the ankle.

“I woke up to find half the leg gone,” she said. “They amputated further just below the knee.

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‘No painkillers, no care’

“No one provided me with an explanation as to why they took away all of my lower leg.”

She alleged she was not given painkillers post-surgery. Her daughter brought her painkillers when she visited, and Khanyeza said she had to wait until no staff was around before taking them.

When she complained that the amputated area needed to be stitched up and treated, she was told she needed another surgery to amputate above the knee. Other than the wound, there was nothing wrong with what remained of the leg.

“I feared losing my whole leg,” she said. “The wound got infected and oozed pus because they never treated it after surgery.

“I decided to discharge myself. I called a taxi and asked the driver to take me to a private doctor. The wound has now healed and I am fine. I saved myself,” she said.

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Khanyeza says her experience at the hospital left her traumatised. She opted to seek counselling.

“I still haven’t accepted that I do not have a second leg.

“I am thankful to the private doctor who saved the rest of my leg. He said the wound needed treatment and not another amputation.”

Hospital ‘highly specialised’

CEO Gladys Bogoshi says she is not aware of Ncube and Khanyeza’s cases.

She explained surgery processes and the problems experienced by diabetic patients, adding that Charlotte Maxeke is highly specialised.

Despite Ncube having waited almost two weeks for her surgery, Bogoshi said amputation should be done soon after a patient’s arrival.

“Sometimes, you get to theatre to amputate a toe, but find that the problem has spread, so they amputate a little bit higher. The cases differ.”

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Asked why there seems to be no wound care after amputation, Bogoshi said the hospital doesn’t close wounds if there are concerns about the patient’s condition.

“We keep the wound open for observation and put a pipe to drain it out. If you stitch it up, the problem could spread further especially because you are unable to see the wound.”

South Rand to the rescue

In Ncube’s case, pressure from her employer led to the hospital transferring her to South Rand Hospital in December.

It was at South Rand where she was nursed back to health and her wound treated. The hospital discharged her last month.

She is in a wheelchair and can no longer work to support her family.

The Gauteng Department of Health says The Citizen enquiries have been sent to the hospital for a response.

There has been no response regarding Ncube’s case, despite a complaint lodged with the Office of Health Standards Compliance (OHSC) last year.

OHSC is a quality assurance unit within the health department.

According to Ncube’s son, officials requested a meeting with the family, informing them that her medical file is with the CEO for “an audit”.

‘No proper case management’

Diabetes is a complicated and long-lasting chronic disease. In serious cases, patients can lose eyesight, and suffer strokes or heart attacks.

According to Democratic Alliance (DA) Gauteng health spokesperson Jack Bloom, Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital needs to improve its diabetic patient management.

“Diabetes is not an easy condition. I’ve dealt with such cases in other hospitals, they do not manage diabetic cases properly.

“A patient gets worse and then they amputate the foot, followed by the ankle.

“It’s tragic and too terrible for words. Specialised management is needed, and if such is not in place, we need to know why,” said Bloom.

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