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The Eastern Cape Health Department has instituted an urgent investigation into allegations of misconduct against a healthcare professional from Ntabankulu Community Health Centre.
This followed the apparently unacceptable remarks made by a male nurse to a young pregnant woman who had arrived at the clinic in the company of an NGO worker.
Provincial Department spokesperson, Yonela Dekeda, says that a male nurse on duty had allegedly made unacceptable comments to the young woman following the miscarriage.
She said, in addition, it is also alleged that the 19-year-old woman from the NGO had been forced to take pictures of the “foetus”.
Dekeda said this “unprofessional behaviour was brought to the attention of the department through a petition from a Ntabankulu-based NGO.”
She said upon receiving the complaint, the Health Department acted swiftly “by engaging the patient and the NGO to get the full details of the incident and also to provide all the necessary support to the patient and those involved. “
Dekeda said psycho-social support has been provided to both the patient and the woman from the NGO.
She said the nurse was removed from both the maternity ward and the Health Centre until the investigation is concluded.
According to the petition, after removing the “foetus” and cleaning the woman, the nurse allegedly began to insult her, accusing her “of aborting the pregnancy” and calling “her a criminal and a liar” when she rejected this accusation.
It stated further that the nurse had allegedly told the woman to show the photos to all of her friends so that they could see what would happen if a pregnancy was aborted.
The head of the Health Department, Dr Rolene Wagner, also decried the reported incident, and reinforced the values expected from “our care teams”.
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