By Gilbert Akampa Kakurugu
MBARARA
One of the babies previously dumped at Mbarara regional referral hospital by anonymous mother has passed on.
Halson Kagure the hospital public relations officer has confirmed this noting that the four months old baby girl has been undergoing treatment at the hospital’s pediatric ward also commonly known as Toto ward for a couple of days. Kagure added that the baby was picked by the hospital cleaner under Nyangoburofa company around the hospital premises.
According to Harrison Kagure,it appears that the baby had spent days in dirty linen where she was wrapped which could have contributed to her poor health and the current cold weather around Mbarara.
He added that the infant was then rushed to pediatric ward on life support machine and she passed on as the medical team was working tooth and nail stabilize her.
Kagure notes that at the time of her death,the hospital administration together with Police was still tracing the whereabouts of the mother.For now,the body of the baby has been taken to the hospital mortuary where postmortem report will be conducted to assist police in further investigations.
Harrison Kagure has also revealed that the hospital is stranded with another baby girl who was dumped by her mother identified as Immaculate Ahimbisibwe a resident of Kyapotani cell, Kakoba ward in Mbarara City.
According to Kagure, the infant is undergoing medical treatment in the Neonatal intensive care unit(NICU) without relatives or next of kin.
Speaking to Dr. Celestine Barigye the hospital director, he condemns the mushrooming cases of babies abandoned at the hospital.
Dr.Barigye says,it’s not only evil but also illegal to dump children who have full entitlement to life as described in the Uganda constitution.
Dr. Barigye is now calling upon the relatives of the abandoned baby to come and pick her and further tasked authorities to help in tracing mother’s who abandon their babies and handle them accordingly.
