Mother has no closure on her son’s death

AN EERSTE River mother whose son died in Tygerberg Hospital nearly a month ago has yet to find closure as she still wants answers about his diagnosis at the time of his death.

Marilyn Marlow said her complaints about the poor service she received at Tygerberg Hospital and Eerste River Day Hospital had fallen on deaf ears.

“He fell ill on October 3, 2017. My 24-year-old son, Dexter Marlow, called me to his room at about 5.30am that morning to help take him to the bathroom,” she said.

Marlow said her son complained about a headache and then she decided to call for help to have him taken to Eerste River Hospital.

“At the hospital I was told I can’t go in to the doctor with my son. We decided to go home and wait for a private doctor to come see him. After examining him, the doctor referred us back to Eerste River Hospital,” Marlow said.

“We waited for two hours for somebody to see him and check his vital signs.When this was checked, he was rushed in to the doctors.”

Shortly after, Marlow said her son was referred to Tygerberg Hospital, where he underwent a CT scan.

“Doctors kept asking if my son had a head injury. During this time, nobody explained to me what was going on and I couldn’t see my son,” she said.

Marlow said that around 5am the next morning, she received a phone call from the hospital.

“That same morning my son died. To this day I have no idea if he was on life support or a ventilator,” Marlow said emotionally.

Tygerberg spokesperson Laetitia Pienaar said: “Upon admission to the hospital, the patient was extremely ill. The medical team kept the family involved in progress and treatment decisions at all times, which included a CT scan.”

The hospital said they would meet with Marlow to address her concerns.