ENGELA – Custodia Shikongo has blamed nurses at Engela District Hospital for negligence, which she said led to the death of her baby during labour.

“Nurses should have referred me for a Caesarean section earlier. I am a mother of four. I have never experienced such suffering before,” she said.

The distraught mother recounted that she went to the hospital on 25 March.

However, the nurses told her she was not ready to deliver.

“On 30 March 2025, I was admitted to the hospital for the delivery of my child. Despite early signs indicating that immediate and specialised intervention was necessary, I experienced severe delays in receiving surgical care. The nurses appeared inattentive and disorganised, ignoring the urgency of my situation,” she said.

Shikongo narrated that on 4 April, she returned to the maternity ward.

 However, the nurses still claimed she was not ready.

“When it became clear that surgery was necessary, the medical team was unprepared, disorganised and slow to act, further endangering my life and my baby’s,” she asserted. On 7 April, Shikongo underwent an ultrasound, where the doctor informed her that the unborn baby was approximately four kilogrammes.

 She was told that she would likely require a Caesarean section.

“Upon admission for delivery, I was taken to the surgical area in a wheelchair, but the nurses mistreated me,” she recalled.

Shikongo said she requested to lie down on a mattress, but one of the nurses refused, saying she would dirty the floor.

“When we arrived, I was left alone without any medical assistance. I found myself lying on the floor in excruciating pain and extreme distress,” she narrated.

She finally underwent surgery on 9 April at Engela District Hospital and was later transferred to the intensive care unit at Oshakati Intermediate Hospital.

“I was taken to another ward. The following day, a nurse informed me that my baby had died in the womb and that I would need to see a social worker,” she said.

The grieving mother said a social worker did offer counselling, but it was difficult to accept given the trauma she experienced from the nurses.

Shikongo claimed that she later learned that her reproductive system had been tampered with without her consent.

“I lost my baby, and now I can no longer give birth because they removed my reproductive organs. I’m also in constant pain because of the operation,” she lamented. Shikongo is now demanding compensation from the health ministry, although she did not disclose the amount. Approached for comment, Ohangwena health director Robert Nandjila said he was unaware of the case until he was approached by this publication.

“I was informed by this journalist. I have since contacted the medical superintendent at Engela hospital regarding the matter,” he said.

Nandjila added that preliminary investigations had commenced.

“I will inform the executive director once the investigation is complete,” he said.

Shikongo’s partner Dirius Haukongo blamed the nurses for their lack of professionalism.

“They should have sent her for surgery sooner. I’m calling on the health minister to get involved,” he said.
–fhamalwa@nepc.com.na