By Montsho Matlala
Groblersdal: The Mokwena family members are still reeling from shock and trauma after they found the body of their elderly mother put in the small room among cleaning implements at Groblersdal Hospital recently.
Detailing the bizarre incident, Moseki Mokwena of Mgababa, Tafelkop told Timeless News his mother Mmakobuna Emily Mokwena 72 took ill on 13 June and was rushed to Groblersdal Hospital.
“The following day on 14 June we received a call from the hospital that she had passed on. We went to the hospital only to be greeted by a horrifying scene. The body of our mother was there in the sluice room full of messily put cleaning materials. The body had been there for almost two hours when we arrived.”
“With heavy hearts we dared to ask why she was not put inside the hospital mortuary. The lame excuse given to us by the four nurses was that the Groblersdal Hospital mortuary does not have capacity to accommodate mortal remains of people with heavyset bodies such as her,” Mokwena explained.
And before the dreadful sight of their mother’s body being put in a place with no cooling systems, Mokwena recalled that a nursing sister responded with disdain when they introduced themselves to the nurses after entering the hospital.
“In accordance the usual courtesy, we told the nurses after introducing ourselves as Mokwena family members coming to confirm what a phone call from the hospital had informed us about the death of our mother. But a sister responded indecently, ‘Do you think we can call and inform you she had passed on when she is alive? We have no time for jokes here.”
The family also alleged the old lady never received nutritional care during her brief stay at the hospital.
“She could not swallow anything on her sick bed so we suggested to the hospital staff that she be inserted with a feeding tube. They refused saying it was not necessary as yet. This situation is unacceptable, Groblersdal Hospital has failed our family”, Mokwena lamented.
After burying their granny, the family found it increasingly difficult to live with the trauma and went back to Groblersdal Hospital on 26 June to lodge formal complaints.
Responding to Timeless News enquiry about the situation, Limpopo Department of Health confirmed receipt of complaints from the family but would not make public comments due to the sensitivity of the matter.
“We have to complete the investigation and report back to the family before we can engage in public statements about this matter. We will fully engage with the family on the outcome of the enquiry,” said provincial health department spokesperson Neil Shikwambana without giving a hint on the duration of the investigation.
