A 26-year-old woman, Elizabeth Njoroge, tragically died on Saturday at the Nakuru County Referral and Teaching Hospital (NCRTH) following complications from an emergency cesarean section. Her grieving family has accused the hospital of negligence and poor communication during the ordeal.
According to Nakuru County Chief Executive Committee (CEC) member for Health, Roselyn Mungai, Elizabeth was admitted on Friday morning with a postdated pregnancy and early labor. She underwent surgery on Saturday at 11:30am, successfully delivering a baby boy.
However, soon after the delivery, Elizabeth developed complications including low oxygen levels and breathing difficulties. She was reportedly resuscitated, incubated, and placed on a ventilator. The hospital faced a critical delay in transferring her to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) due to a lack of available beds, managing to move her only at 3:00pm—nearly two hours later. Elizabeth went into cardiac arrest and passed away at 5:41pm.
CEC Mungai stated that a medical audit determined the complications were neither predictable nor preventable. Nevertheless, she acknowledged that the hospital’s delay in communicating with the family during this critical time was a serious oversight.
Elizabeth’s husband, Benson Kinyanjui, recounted their hopeful journey to the hospital on Good Friday, emphasizing that his wife was in good health. “For an emergency, for someone who is not breathing, it took two hours? Two hours?” he questioned in an emotional interview with NTV.
Her mother, Susan Wanjiku, also spoke out, describing the trauma of discovering her daughter’s lifeless body with taped eyes and a blackened tongue, demanding accountability and promising to seek justice.
“We recognise and deeply regret the delay in communicating with the family during the critical period immediately following the surgery,” said Mungai.
As the family mourns the loss of a beloved daughter, wife, and new mother, they continue to call for transparency and accountability. The incident has sparked renewed concern over maternal healthcare systems and emergency response preparedness in public hospitals across Kenya.
