A family in Qarani, Gau are demanding justice and claiming negligence from medical officials for the way they were treated leading to the death of their six month old baby, Samisoni Vana Ratuvou.
The family says on Sunday, baby Ratuvou became ill with diarrhoea, and was taken to Qarani Health Centre seeking urgent medical care on Monday morning.
They say sadly, they were told the facility was closed due to water disruption.
The family claims that no proper examination was done, no drip was given, and they were sent back to the village with only two bottles of Panadol.
They say as the day went on, the baby's condition continued to worsen.
By evening, the 6-month-old began experiencing shortness of breath, and the last bottle of milk he took that night seemed as though his weak body could no longer accept it.
Fearing for their baby's life, the family rushed him back to Qarani Health Centre around 11pm.
They say what they witnessed was heartbreaking as the service provided was extremely poor.
The family claims that the doctor and nurse on duty were very slow and appeared unsure of what they were doing, despite the urgency of their baby’s condition.
They say their 6-month-old was given multiple nebulizations, even though he was already severely dehydrated from diarrhoea, and this seemed to further worsen his breathing.
Moments after their arrival, the doctor attempted to put him on a drip in both his hands and legs but struggled to find his veins.
They say precious time was lost as their baby grew weaker before their eyes.
The family is claiming despite their desperate pleas and hope for immediate help, their son did not receive the timely and adequate care he needed and was pronounced dead at around 3am-4am.
They say after the postmortem was conducted it was discovered that the cause of death was dehydration.
The family is calling on the Ministry of Health to urgently and seriously improve health care facilities, staffing, resources, and emergency services, especially for remote communities.
They are also raising the issue of lack of water, proper diagnosis, and lack of timely care, which cost their family a life, and they do not want this to happen again to anyone on the island of Gau, stressing that every life matters and access to proper health care is not a privilege; it is a basic right.
We have sent questions to the Ministry of Health. They are yet to respond.
