Body decomposes as hospital tosses family

HAUNA District Hospital is in the eye of a storm after storing a corpse in a malfunctioning mortuary and allegedly taking too long to release it to the bereaved family, The Manica Post has learnt.

It is understood that Tinashe Vakirai (10)’s body was put in the mortuary on Sunday but was only released on Tuesday in an advanced state of decomposition.

Tinashe died at his maternal grandmother, Ms Jane Tombo’s homestead in Zindi Village, under Chief Mutasa’s area.

He was suffering from undiagnosed mumps and tonsils.

Mutasa District Medical Officer, Dr Arthur Kapfunde confirmed that the hospital’s mortuary was malfunctioning and was being repaired.

Dr Kapfunde said he was yet to get a report on Tinashe’s case.

He said he will go on a fact-finding mission and update the reporter on his findings.

“That matter has not been reported to me yet, but we only release bodies when the proper paperwork is availed. If it is true that the body was not released when the family wanted it, then it could be because there was no proper paperwork which is required for a body to be released,” he said.

caught up with the family members on Tuesday as they milled around a Mutare funeral parlour where their son’s decomposing body was being dressed.

The boy’s father, Mr Tatenda Vakirai said at one time, his son’s body was released to them but as it was being loaded into the hearse, an argument erupted between the mortuary attendant and a security guard over some paperwork.

As a result, the body was taken back into the mortuary.

When the family eventually got the body on Tuesday, it was decomposing.

“We did not get an apology from the hospital, yet they delayed the processing of all the necessary documents from Sunday until Tuesday. We were forced to get an affidavit from Village Head Zindi confirming that Tinashe had died at her grandmother’s home.

“We were also told to make a police report first. The process was prolonged as we were tossed from one office to the other,” he said.

Mr Vakirai said they failed to pay for the post mortem due to financial constraints and asked the hospital authorities to waiver it.

“We were shocked that we were subjected to such treatment. The mortuary attendant, doctors and security guards seemed to be working in cohorts.

“If they had problems with us not having money to have a post-mortem done on our child, they should have told us, not to leave my son’s corpse to decompose in their malfunctioning mortuary,” said Mr Vakirai.

Ms Tombo said one doctor insisted that the symptoms she had described could not have caused death and therefore a post mortem had to be done.

“They said they feared being in trouble with the law, hence they kept delaying us in taking my grandson’s body, yet they knew that the mortuary freezers were not working. I am in deep pain because the state of my grandson’s body is sickening,” she said.

When The Manica Post visited the district’s referral’s morgue, there was a pungent smell near the mortuary.