[UPDATE] Man dies after ‘being given the runaround’ between local hospitals
After being told by nurses to wait and be patient, Paul Legodi passed on without his family ever knowing his diagnosis.
POLOKWANE – According to sources, Legodi was given the runaround between the Seshego Hospital and the Pietersburg Provincial Hospital after he developed a lump in his neck.
In a story in BONUS, dated 3 to 9 October, Legodi told of how the pain had become unbearable.
Read more: Faulty CT scan gives patient with lump in his neck the run around
At the time, Spokesperson for the Department of Health, Neil Shikwambana said the reason for the treatment delay was a lack of equipment, which they were in the process of acquiring.
Sadly, Legodi did not live long enough to make use of the promised equipment.
Dinkie van Rensburg, his younger sister, told Bonus that the past few weeks were especially painful for her him.
“We still didn’t know what was wrong with him. After the article we received better service from the hospital but that did not last long.”
Even after he underwent a biopsy, the lump grew in size, she said.
“The final results of the biopsy have not been shared with us yet.”
She truly believes her brother would be alive today had it not been for the poor service received.
“During his entire ordeal, he was simply given painkillers to numb the pain. Nothing stopped the lump from growing and no one gave us an explanation.” She says her brother was released from hospital to wait for the biopsy results and spent his last week at home.
During this time, his speech became incoherent and he could not tell left from right.
“He would constantly look lost and just wasn’t himself. My brother, once full of life, seemed very out of it.”
She says he constantly complained of pain.
“We took him to a private doctor to get stronger painkillers and after that, he seemed more content.”
On Sunday though, he started complaining of neck pain, and they took him to hospital.
“The hole from where the biopsy was done, were getting bigger.”
She said she last saw her brother on Monday evening during visiting hours.
“He was not responsive. His face was swollen, his tongue was sticking out and his breathing was laboured.”
She says it was at that moment that she felt useless because her older brother, whom she had always looked up to, was a shell of his former self and she could not do anything to ease his pain.
“That was the last time I saw him, and I remember telling him I love him. He told me I would always be his baby sister.”
She has urged the department to “go back to the drawing board in the execution of quality service”.
Departmental spokesperson, Neil Shikwambana declined to comment on Legodi’s death.
