Leader of the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP)’s Women’s Wing, daughter of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom Dhunya Maumoon, has called on the authorities to investigate the death of a 36 year-old woman who died in Laamu Atoll regional Hospital this week after undergoing a cesarean section.
Speaking to the press yesterday, Dhunya said in other countries whenever such incidents occurred a maternal death audit was conducted. The Maldives also needed to introduce the maternal death auditing to prevent medical negligence, she said.
The 36 year-old woman admitted to Laamu Atoll Regional Hospital died after undergoing a cesarean last week.
Family members claimed the doctor mistakenly cut some veins during the operation, with local media reporting the woman subsequently received three pints of blood in an emergency transfusion.
After the cesarean, the hospital advised the family to take her to Male’ as soon as possible, but since the family was unable to catch a flight that night they waited for a Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) helicopter to arrive the following morning. The woman died later that evening, and the hospital has so fair declined to comment.
The woman had requested to undergo a C-section as she felt the baby was large, however the doctor declined until the last minute, the family told Haveeru.
Local media reported islanders as claiming that the doctor had not performed a cesarean operation before and conducted the operation watching a video of a cesarean operation. The baby survived the procedure and was in a stable condition.
Dhunya further alleged that as a consequence of the government’s decision to privatise hospitals, high prices had impacted the capability of ordinary citizens to receive services.
She also welcomed Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM)’s decision to organise a ‘sit-down’ near the tsunami monument, to raise awareness of the increase in inhumane and violent crimes committed in the Maldives today.
Dhunya called on the government to curb the increase in crimes committed against women.
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