By Tokpa Tarnue, tarnue82@hmail.com
VOINJAMA, Liberia –The Lofa county health team is currently investigating the death of yet another pregnant woman, who reportedly died on a commercial vehicle en route to get medical attention amidst logistical problems facing the health system amid deplorable roads.
According to family members of the young pregnant woman, age 22 and identified as Hawa Kamara, she had entered her nine months on Friday December 27, when the unfortunate incident occurred.
A UN Women report in 2017 says: “With 1,072 maternal deaths for every 100,000 births, Liberia has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, according to UNICEF. The mortality rate of newborns, within the first 28 days of life, is also high—37 for every 1,000 live births.”
Ma. Fatu, the family member of the deceased disclosed that pregnant woman, who was a surgery patient, had complained of having stomach pain, after which she was immediately referred from Popalahun Health Center to the Kolahun hospital on December 27, 2019.
She alleged that upon their arrival at the kolahun hospital, there was no doctor at the facility and that they were asked to provide $7,000LD (seven thousand Liberian dollars) for the purchasing of fuel for the hospital ambulance to do another referral to the Tellewoyan Hospital in Voinjama City.
When the road is bad it takes some three hours to get to Voinjama.
Ma Fatu said they were unable to make available the said amount and had to appeal to a commercial driver, who left kolahun with the patient by 5:00am on December 28, 2019 for Voinjama.
According to her, the 22-year-old pregnant woman died upon arrival at the Tellewoyan Hospital, something she attributed to lack of funds on Friday December 27 to purchase fuel for the hospital’s ambulance. And it is also understood that there was no medical doctor present.
When contacted, the hospital’s Administrator John Kawala said the information from the family was false and misleading.
“The patient did not surface at the kolahun hospital” and we also did not ask for any money for purchasing fuel from any family member,” Administrator Kawala added.
He however confirmed the absence of the medical doctor assigned at the hospital, but quickly disclosed that there is an acting medical doctor at the facility.
Lofa County Health Officer Dr. John Doedeh, who is currently in Monrovia, also stated that the patient did not surface at the hospital.
There have been several reports in recent times that the medical doctor assigned at the facility has been on leave for over two months now, which has also resulted to lots of cases being referred to the Tellewoyan in Voinjama.
Advocates in Lofa County are meanwhile calling on the Ministry of Health through the Lofa County Health Team (LCHT) to ensure proper investigation into this latest case of maternal death to prevent any reoccurrence in the County.