Health probes baby’s death

GOVERNMENT has launched an intensive investigation into the power outage at the Windhoek Central Hospital on Tuesday, which allegedly led to the death of a baby.

This was confirmed by the health minister, Bernard Haufiku.

Speaking to Nampa on Tuesday, Haufiku said apart from the investigation, worn-out electrical generators at public institutions across the country should be repaired or replaced as a matter of urgency.

He explained that the investigation is aimed at ascertaining the facts leading to the death of the baby.

“We want to know if the baby was going to pass on eventually as a result of his chronic illness, or whether it was because of the power outage. Because if that is the case, then we will maintain our position,” said Haufiku.

Haufiku could, however, not specify how long the investigation will take.

The investigation follows a media report in a local English daily on Tuesday that a four-month-old baby died in the intensive care unit (ICU) of the Mediclinic private hospital shortly after having been transferred from the Windhoek Central Hospital.

Additionally, four other critically ill patients were transferred to the Lady Pohamba and Mediclinic hospitals as a result of the power outage, the report stated.

The ICU reportedly lost power at 05h00, which was only restored at around 11h00. The backup generator allegedly only worked for an hour before failing.

According to Haufiku, this is mainly due to poor maintenance in replacing worn-out electrical equipment at public health institutions as a result of insufficient funds within the ministry.

This situation has been ongoing for over 15 years, the minister said.

“What worries me most is that after the power outage, the [back-up] generators failed to assist,” Haufiku noted.

He added that recent irregularities in the public health service and frustrations on the part of consumers could be disastrous to the trust between both parties.

According to Haufiku, a growing majority of people often prefer private medical care as a result of shortcomings in the public health system.

“The trust has been lost; we can no longer deny that. This is life-saving equipment, and we cannot play around with it,” he said.

Energy minister Obeth Kandjoze also pledged his assistance to avoid such incidents in future, Haufiku stated.

– Nampa

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