Medico-legal: R3m sought for womb removal without consent

An Eastern Cape mother is suing the provincial Health Department for R3m after a doctor removed her womb, allegedly without her knowledge, when she developed an infection after her Caesarean section, says a Dispatch LIVE report. Siphesihle Mtyingezane (26), of Somerville village in Tsolo, gave birth to her son at the local Dr. Malizo Mpehle Hospital in October 2017. She was later transferred to Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital in Mthatha, where her womb was removed. Mtyingezane said doctors broke the news to her only after they had removed her womb.

She reportedly told the Daily Dispatch that after a doctor performed a C-section to deliver her baby, she developed a severe infection. According to her lawyer, Thobani Noah, the claim for damages against the MEC for Health was submitted in 2019 and he was awaiting a trial date. Health Department spokesperson Sizwe Kupelo said: ‘What is being alleged here is most unlikely.’ He said most similar claims were lodged by chance-takers. ‘We took a decision to defend all medico-legal claims as some of them are believed to be done on a chance-taking basis,’ but added: ‘I will not discuss the merits of this case.’ Noah said it was only after the operation that the doctors at Nelson Mandela Academic Hospital told his client that they had to remove her womb to save her life. ‘She was never made aware that the womb would be removed.