GPHC touts commitment to neonatal care despite recent death of premature baby

Mar 15, 2023 News

Kaieteur News – The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has said that it is committed to preserving the lives of infants despite the recent death of a premature baby which occurred at the institution.

The hospital’s response comes days after this publication carried a story of a young mother being traumatized after losing her baby who was under observation at the Neonatal Unit of GPHC.

Sabrina Crawford of Middle Road, La Penitence, Georgetown had told Kaieteur News said that her daughter, Shaliyah Darlington received the devastating news when she went to visit her baby who was born premature at GPHC on March 3, 2023.

Crawford said that the child had been under observation and recovering well in the neonatal unit of the hospital before she died last Friday due to hemorrhaging.

“The doctor told us that baby was coming around, they even took her off the machine but when my daughter went on Friday, lo and behold, they telling she that the baby died. I am concerned because this sudden change of condition does not add up. My daughter is so traumatized to even speak right now,” Crawford told Kaieteur News.

Public Relations Officer (PRO) of GPHC, Jai Lall said in a statement that the hospital is aware of the claims made by Darlington’s relative. Lall said that Darlington was a patient with a high-risk pregnancy, who was referred to the GPHC’s care from a private hospital one day prior to delivering prematurely.

Lall noted that while the hospital sympathizes with Darlington and her family in their time of bereavement, it notes that any patient being managed in an Intensive Care Unit is considered critical until they have been discharged into a step-down unit.

“In this case, Ms. Darlington’s baby was being managed in the Neonatal Intensive Care (NICU), as premature babies are at great risk due to the inability of their organs to function the way they should,” he added.

According to the PRO, the capable and competent neonatal team at the GPHC is always committed to keeping babies alive – unfortunately, sometimes babies succumb to illnesses.

“As always, we encourage our patients, and their relatives, to utilize the resources available at the hospital as a first resort for getting information or making complaints, so that appropriate and timely recourse can be taken,” Lall said.

• baby, Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), Neonatal Unit, premature, Shaliyah Darlington