Maternal, infant deaths worry Kasese residents

An investigation by the Daily Monitor revealed that between April and December 2023, at least 15 mothers lost their lives during childbirth in Kasese District.

The investigation also revealed that several babies died in the same period while others were left clinging to life in the neonatal wards.

Some of the deaths occurred at St Paul’s Hospital Kasese, Mt St Mary’s Hospital, Kilembe Mines Hospital, Kagando Hospital, Kasese Hospital, and Kyarumba Primary Health Care.

The facilities are now under scrutiny due to the number of maternal deaths.

Cases

The most recent case occurred earlier this month when 19-year-old Emerasi Ithungu, lost her life at Bwera General Hospital in Mpondwe Lhubiriha Town Council. Her baby also died.

Another incident occurred on December 23 last year at Kilembe Mines Hospital.

Mr Matayo Kibaba, 32, a resident of Namhuga North West Cell in Bulembia Division, Kasese Municipality and husband of Joyline Biira, narrated to this publication the events of the fateful day.

“I was in Kampala when I received information that my wife had been taken to Kilembe Mines Hospital. I got a call from my elder brother who told me that her health was deteriorating. After two hours, he called again informing me that she had died,” he said.

His brother, Mr Ernest Mugisa Bithire, said on December 23, Biira developed labour pain, and at around 5:30pm, she delivered a baby boy.

However, her condition worsened as she began to bleed due to a rupture of the vagina necessitating a blood transfusion.

 “The health workers continued struggling to save her life and even suggested removing her vagina but she ended up dying,” he said.

The baby was initially placed on oxygen and later referred to Kagando Hospital in the Neonatal ward. After a week, the baby was taken to Nzirambi Orphanage Training Development Centre in Kabirizi Village, Lake Katwe Sub-county.

Similarly, Mr Yahaya Balikoowa, originally from Rwim Village in Kasese Central Division, also lost his wife, Sumaya Masika, 32, on December 14.

Mr Balikoowa, a taxi driver, said he left home around 4am as usual but at around 11am, his wife called to inform him that she had developed pain in the abdomen.

He said he advised her to go for a scan to determine the cause and she went to Ebenezer Scan and Image Centre in Kasese Town. After the scan, she was referred to St Paul’s Hospital Kasese for further management.

“At the hospital, she underwent an operation and the baby was found to be dead,” he said, adding that his wife died shortly after.

On December 27, Hellen Biira died during childbirth at Kagando Hospital.

Mr Augustine Bwambale, Biira’s husband, said she was seven months pregnant at the time of the incident.

He said on the night of December 26, Biira started bleeding and he rushed her to Bwera Hospital around 7am the following morning.

“We found a woman writing and some people attending to their patients. They advised me to try the private wing,” Mr Bwambale said.

He added at the private wing, they found a health worker attending to several patients.

After examining his wife, the health worker referred the couple to Kagando Hospital due to the severity of her condition.

On the way to the hospital, they stopped by a clinic as his wife’s condition was deteriorating. At the facility, they were told that her blood pressure had dropped.

The next morning, the couple went to Kagando Hospital, where health workers began attending to his wife.

He added that his wife was taken for an operation where it was discovered that the placenta was not properly positioned.

Mr Bwambale said the doctor suggested removing his wife’s vagina, which the father of four reluctantly agreed to.

About 15 minutes later, health workers called him to see his newborn baby girl, who had been taken to the neonatal ward for life support.

Meanwhile, his wife was still in the theatre fighting for her life. A doctor told Mr Bwambale to get items, which he immediately went to buy at a nearby trading centre. However, he was called and told to hurry back as his wife’s condition was deteriorating rapidly.

“When I reached the theatre, my wife was already out of the operating room, surrounded by health workers who looked frightened and puzzled. They informed me that my wife had experienced excessive bleeding and had died. I broke down,” he said.

He added: “I trusted those people at Kagando Hospital, but the way they treated and fooled me was not good at all. I swear I shall never seek medical services for myself or my children at Kagando Hospital unless I am unconscious because of the unfriendly experience they put me through.”

Mr Bwambale said after burying his wife, he went to Bwera Hospital to arrange for an ambulance to transfer his child to Mbarara Referral Regional Hospital. The hospital charged him Shs380,000 for fuel, Shs55,000 for the accompanying health worker, and Shs50,000 for the driver, with no receipt provided.

Another case involves Anent Masika, 33, who lost her life at Kyarumba Primary Health Care in Kyarumba Town Council. Her son also died.

According to the admission form, Masika arrived at the facility on November 11 and passed away on November 12.

“The patient died from Kyarumba PCH Health Centre III, and we are referring her to Kagando for postmortem and removing the dead child,” it stated.

Juliet Ninsiima, 33, a resident of Kyalanga Cell in Scheme Ward, Nyamwamba Division, Kasese Municipality, died on November 19 at St Paul’s Hospital Kasese, along with her child after birth.

Aidah Kyakimwa, 29, also died on September 19 at Mt St Mary’s Hospital and was buried in Ibanda-Kyanya Town Council.

Gorret Biira, 30, lost her life while giving birth at Nyamirami Health Centre IV in Muhokya Sub-county. She was buried in Kinyateke Village, Kahokya Sub-county.

Dorothy Akankwasa, 22, passed away along with her daughter on May 26, 2023, at Mt St Mary’s Hospital. She was buried in Kirongo Village, Katooke Parish, Bugoye Sub-county.

In May, Mr Douglas Kibwebweli of Kyalhukanga Village in Muhokya Sub-county lost his wife, Faith Ithungu, shortly after reaching Nyamirami Health Centre IV for delivery.

Mary Muhindo, a resident of Busyangwa Village in Kisinga Sub-county, died four days after delivering a baby boy at Bwera hospital in April last year. Her husband, Mr Luke Muhindo, reported that his wife’s health deteriorated after delivery, leading to her death.

Lillian Masika and Morius Rujumba, both residents of Karambi and Kyamuhamira villages, passed away in April last year. Masika died on April 25 while Rujumba on April 20.

Janet Biira, 30, an enrolled nurse, died at home after developing labour pain on April 22, last year.

“When the contractions became too intense while still at home, I called a health worker at Kasese Hospital, where she had been receiving antenatal care. When the health worker arrived, she examined my wife and said she was about to give birth,” Mr Kamalha said.

He said the midwife assisted Janet to give birth at home and after making sure that Janet was in good condition, the baby was taken to the hospital for further treatment, while the mother stayed at home.

“One hour later, the mother presented with mild bleeding. She was immediately rushed to the same hospital, where she received two units of blood. By 1:30 pm, she was put on oxygen. At 3pm, she passed away,” Mr Kamalha recounted.

RESPONSE

The acting health officer of Kasese District, Dr Stephen Bagonza, expressed regret over the matter, saying the district’s maternal report is yet to be audited to determine the exact cause of this concerning trend.

Dr Bagonza tentatively attributed the issue to patients delaying to seek medical services.

“We don’t want a woman dying while giving birth; it is actually against our health laws. The main issue is the delay [to take patients to hospital due to poor planning]. Sometimes, they delay seeking antenatal care, only coming to the facility when it is late. When we start monitoring in labour, it has often progressed beyond a manageable stage,” he said.

Dr Bagonza added that he is aware that some health workers are not professional when handling some patients, saying his office would launch an investigation into the matter.

“Although the community tends to blame my health workers at facilities, I cannot deny that there might be problems. Health workers report that the problem of maternal deaths is exacerbated by some mothers arriving at the hospital in the worst stages,” he said.

Regarding religious sects that prohibit blood transfusions, Dr Bagonza said this too would be thoroughly investigated.

“We shall engage faith leaders to provide relevant books where they obtain information on no transfusions. The faith of individuals must not jeopardise the lives of both the child and the mother during delivery. If their faith prohibits transfusions, we will seek evidence to understand the potential impact on someone’s life,” he said.

Mr Godfrey Atkins Katusabe, the Bukonzo County West MP, said he requested the Ministry of Health to send a team for an audit.

“Last year, I presented the issue on the floor of Parliament, and the Speaker was already aware that our mothers are dying during childbirth. Very soon, a team of experts will come to conduct an audit,” Mr Katusabe said.