Broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder and a bruised arm is what Andile Mbasa allegedly woke up to at the Garden City private hospital after he had driven himself to the facility to treat a sinus ailment.
On December 1 last year Mbasa, 34, visited the hospital for a cisternogram where doctors assessed whether his cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), fluid that surrounds the brain, was leaking into the nose and sinuses after weeks of problems with his sinuses.
According to Mbasa the 30 to 40 minute procedure that involved injecting fluid into the spine didn’t require him to be sedated, so he observed as doctors did their job, completing it without any problems.
“I was wide awake and could see everything that was happening. Only local anaesthesia was used on my back where the injection was inserted,” he said.
“Afterwards I was wheeled to a ward where I was going to sleep. I was told I needed to be observed for eight hours before I could go home, the procedure was done after midday.”
He said the doctor had warned him about possible headaches after the procedure.
“Two hours into my sleep, I woke up in excruciating pain. My body was painful, I could not lift myself to get out of bed. I also noticed a bruise on my right arm,” he said
“I informed the nurses and asked if this was normal. I was then given painkillers and I was taken to see a physiotherapist who gave me a body massage.”
The pain led to Mbasa sleeping at the hospital overnight and only being discharged at 10am the next day and he had to be driven home by a friend.
Mbasa claims he spent four days struggling to get out of bed at his home and on the fifth day went to consult a general practitioner who assessed him and referred him to the same hospital for X-rays.
There it was found that Mbasa had sustained a dislocated shoulder and two fractured ribs which had led to blood gathering between his chest wall and lungs.
“I don’t know how this happened, but it could have only happened at one place. I did not go anywhere before or after the cisternogram.”
He was then admitted for five days during which he underwent surgery to repair his shoulder and was treated for localised haemothaorax caused by the fractured ribs costing him R162,000 on his medical aid.
In February he wrote to the hospital to lodge a complaint.
“I was told an investigation would be launched and after several follow-up and constant calls, I still have no answers.” Sowetan has seen a chain of emails between him and hospital employees who said the issue was being escalated.
“In the last conversation the hospital called me to tell me that the investigation was finalised. I asked for the report to be sent to me and it’s not been sent.”
However, the hospital has denied this, claiming it “offered Mr Mbasa the opportunity to obtain a copy of his hospital file so that he could appraise himself of any information required and to date he has not responded to our letter, nor has he requested a copy of his file”.
The hospital's general manager Zeyn Asmal further said: “The hospital refutes the allegation that an adverse event occurred during Mr Mbasa’s admission. A formal review of his hospital admission file was conducted, which indicated no evidence that Mr Mbasa suffered any adverse event during his admission.”
Asmal said Mbasa returned to the hospital on December 7 with bruising to his right arm and was admitted at the emergency department.
“He indicated that he only experienced shoulder pain on December 7 for the first time. This means that five days had passed following his [initial] discharge from hospital. I am sure you will agree that the hospital cannot be held accountable for injuries that occurred several days after he left the facility,” said Asmal.
Mbasa said he wanted the hospital to compensate him for the pain he continues to go through.
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