R36m negligence claim settled

A R36 MILLION claim by a distraught Newcastle mother against the KZN Department of Health for medical negligence was settled at the Pietermaritzburg High Court yesterday.

In terms of the court order granted by Judge Kobus Booyens yesterday, the details of the settlement cannot be made public.

But Ntonbenhle Mkhize, the mother of a 6-year-old cerebral palsied boy, said she was satisfied with it, and hoped her son would now receive the medical care he required to live a better quality of life.

Mkhize started her legal battle last year in her attempt to claim R36m from the provincial MEC for Health for hospital staff negligence. In August an interim payment of R5m was made to her for her son’s past medical expenses, after the department conceded liability.

According to court papers, Mkhize gave birth to her son, Thabiso, after being in labour for three days. It took a doctor 15 minutes to resuscitate him and he was left severely handicapped.

Mkhize alleged her son’s condition was due to the negligence of staff at both Utrecht Clinic and Madadeni hospital, to which she was transferred.

Mhkize claimed staff at both the clinic and hospital disregarded the fact that she was more than three weeks overdue and believed she should have been given a Caesarean section.

As a result, Thabiso will be totally dependent on others for the rest of his life, requiring constant therapy, specialised equipment and adaptations to his living environment.