Mombasa couple sue hospitals for the loss of their baby

A Mombasa couple has sued two public hospitals accusing them of professional negligence resulting in the loss/disappearance of their child.

Ms Mercy Masambaga and Mr Julius Kimeli claim that Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital (CGTRH) and Port Reitz hospital in Mombasa were professionally negligent in how they provided health services to Ms Masambaga in respect to the birth of the couple’s baby.

According to the plaintiffs, on February 26, Ms Masambaga sought health services from Port Reitz hospital, where she was admitted and had a Caesarian delivery, before the baby was taken to the nursery without her seeing him.

“Mr Kimeli, who had all along accompanied his wife, was shown a baby, who was a boy, but was informed the child was underweight and needed oxygen support, which was not available at Port Reitz and was referred to CGTRH,” the couple says.

In their suit papers filed at the High Court in Mombasa, they say that Port Reitz hospital, through its nurse who was accompanied by Mr Kimeli, transferred the child to Coast General hospital where he was admitted and put in an incubator for oxygen support.

It was not until March 1 when Ms Masambaga was transferred from Port Reitz hospital to Coast General to breastfeed her son.

“At the nursery she was shown her child by the duty nurse, but she was female, yet she had been told by the nurse who attended to her at Port Reitz and by her husband that her child was male,” the couple says.

Hours later, Ms Masambaga was told by the head nurse at Coast General that her child died on February 27 and was taken to the mortuary.

However, the couple says that on March 2, Mr Kimeli went to Coast General mortuary and inquired about the baby who had died, but was told that no dead child was booked in from February 27, 28 and March 1.

Mr Kimeli, the couple says, was told that there were only two bodies of babies (male and female) who were taken to the mortuary on March 2, and that upon going to see them, none was their baby.

“The second plaintiff (Mr Kimeli) complained that none of the babies was his but the second defendant (CGTRH) insisted that the male child belonged to them,” says the couple who added that they reported the matter to the police.

Police recorded their statements before seeking court orders to allow them to take their blood samples as well as those from the deceased male baby for a DNA test.

The test was done, say the husband and wife, but they add that they are apprehensive that considering the two hospitals, police and the testing centre are all government institutions, there is a likelihood of a cover up and manipulation of results to protect the hospitals.

They accuse Port Reitz hospital of negligence by failing to show Ms Masambaga her newborn baby immediately after birth and for not labelling the child with a tag identifying him with her as required by law.

The couple also accuse the hospital of failing to refer Ms Masambaga to Coast General together with her baby, and referring the newborn alone without any records and failure to keep proper records regarding the baby.

They accuse Coast General of receiving and admitting the newborn from Port Reitz without any records and receiving it without ascertaining its parents’ identities.

The couple also accuse the referral hospital of receiving and admitting the baby without keeping proper and accurate records as expected by law and failure to identify the parents, leading to its disappearance.

They also accuse the hospital of imposing on them the deceased baby as theirs without the backing of any hospital records.

The couple want a declaration that the hospitals were jointly and severally professionally negligent in how they provided health services to Ms Masambaga in respect to the birth of her baby.

They also want a declaration that the hospitals were jointly and severally liable for the loss of their child. They are also seeking general damages.

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