Ghana: Couples demand $1.5m for stillbirth

  1. Posted on Thursday 6 May 2010 - 10:10
    Daniel
    Image of Daniel
    Daniel Nana Aforo, AfricaNews reporter in Accra, Ghana
    A Ghanaian couple are disgruntled over the death of their new born child and have threatened to sue the Lister Hospital for US$1.5 million for alleged "negligence and incompetence."
    AfricaNews' Dan Aforo interview Mrs Vaah
    Little Thomas Vaah Junior died immediately after delivery.

    Thomas and Elizabeth Vaah said they would use the money to establish a foundation in honour of the child to assist all maternal women who negligently suffers such trauma in the country.

    They have both lived in the USA for many years with three daughters until they decided to be in the West African country to give birth to their only boy.

    Elizabeth told AfricaNews at their residence that the premature death of their baby could have been avoided if the health officials had taken adequate precautionary measures.

    She said the nurses showed gross indiscipline towards her at the time of admission.

    She said: “My husband has to go and call them to see to me but all left on deaf ears.

    “When the child was delivered I realized he was not crying as a delivered child does but I was told he will be alright until later got informed that I lost the baby. Lister Hospital has all the facilities that first class hospital need to have but has now known this was through human error”.

    The irked mother said a scan result in the USA showed that the child was under normal condition and proved that the fetus was a boy.

    The World Bank consultant noted that many women and couples have suffered through this tragedy in silence hence the need to fight against such attitudes in the country.

    Elizabeth whose husband works with the United Nations said they have already set the foundation in motion and more about it could be read on www.vaahjuniorfoundation.org

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