Zorena Jantze
A NAMIBIAN woman is suing the Ministry of Health and Social Services for N$13 million in damages after a surgery at the Katutura State Hospital, during which doctors left a needle in her uterus and subsequently stitched her up, leaving the medical instrument inside her body.
The woman, whose name Informanté has chosen not to reveal due to the sensitive nature of the matter, is represented by lawyer Gaenor Michaels. She is currently seeking a court order to compel the health ministry to provide certain documents in their discovery affidavit, such as the name of the doctor who operated on her and the nursing staff who were present, among other things.
According to the particulars of claim, Michaels said that on or about 22 February 2016, the plaintiff visited Katutura Hospital, complaining of, among other things, abdominal pain and excessive menstrual bleeding as a result of myoma (fibroids in the uterus).
“It is further alleged that the plaintiff was subsequently admitted to Ward 3A at Katutura Hospital and was informed that she was admitted for, among other things, a surgical operation, which was to be performed on 24 February 2016. Following the surgical operation performed on 24 February 2016, the plaintiff remained in the hospital and continued to experience even more severe and excruciating abdominal pain, cramps, and a bloated stomach,” the plaintiff’s lawyer said.
Michaels further elaborated that on or about 25 February 2016—a day after the aforementioned surgical operation—the plaintiff was informed that the operation had gone wrong, as one of the apparatus/needles used by the first defendant’s medical staff during the operation had broken off, leaving a piece of the needle lodged in the plaintiff’s uterus.
“On 29 February 2016, as the plaintiff’s excruciating abdominal pain continued unabated, the medical officer who conducted the surgical operation made himself available to the plaintiff for the first time and explained the results of the X-ray, which depicted a needle piece lodged in the plaintiff’s uterus. The medical officer informed the plaintiff, and the plaintiff at that time believed the information, that the needle lodged in her uterus could not be removed immediately after the surgery,” Michaels said.
She added that the plaintiff pleads that, to date, the aforementioned needle is still lodged in her uterus, eight years after the initial surgery, and that the defendants have failed and/or neglected to remove the broken needle.
Moreover, Michaels said that towards the end of 2022, the plaintiff learned that as a result of the aforementioned surgical operation and the lack of proper medical care and treatment, she has sustained permanent injury, including the inability to heal completely or live a normal life, the inability to enjoy normal sexual activity and intimacy, and the inability to conceive and bear children without complications that endanger her own life and that of any unborn children, among other things.
Michaels added that the plaintiff is no longer fit for employment due to the continuous injury caused by the piece of needle that remains lodged in her body.
“The first defendant and/or his employees at the said hospital failed to take all reasonable steps and precautions to ensure that the treatment the plaintiff received was professional and thorough, and to ensure that no acts of negligence, which endangered the plaintiff, occurred during her hospitalisation,” Michaels stressed.
SURGERY GONE WRONG: The Katutura State Hospital. Photo: Contributed
