St. Teresa Maternity Kikuyu In The Spot Again Over Botched C-Section

Hospital linked to second maternal death six years after closure over similar incident

St. Teresa Maternity and Nursing Hospital in Kikuyu is facing fresh allegations of medical negligence following the death of a 32-year-old woman during a caesarean section, reviving painful memories of a similar tragedy that led to its closure in 2019.

Phyllis Wanjiru died on September 11 at Kenyatta National Hospital after developing complications from a C-section at St. Teresa’s two days earlier.

Her husband, Joseph Wanyonyi, alleges that his wife bled for hours without proper intervention, ultimately losing four litres of blood before being transferred to KNH where she later succumbed.

The couple had visited St. Teresa’s on September 9 to book a bed for a scheduled gynaecological appointment. Wanjiru was not in labour and had walked from home to the hospital without difficulty.

However, hospital director Dr Moses Mwaura reviewed her file and decided to proceed with an emergency caesarean within 30 minutes of their arrival.

“My wife was not in labour. We walked together from home and she was okay,” said Wanyonyi. “A few hours after surgery, I was told both mother and baby were well. She complained of stomach pain, but doctors said it was normal.”

The situation deteriorated rapidly that evening. At 9 PM, Wanjiru called her husband frantically, saying she had overheard doctors discussing her transfer to KNH.

By the time Wanyonyi rushed back, his wife was being loaded into an ambulance, unable to speak.

At KNH, doctors informed him that his wife had lost four litres of blood due to internal bleeding and required emergency surgery, likely including removal of her uterus.

Despite giving consent for the procedure, Wanjiru died the following morning from what the post-mortem revealed as Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation, a rare condition where blood clotting becomes fatally disrupted.

This tragedy mirrors the incident that led to St. Teresa’s closure in May 2019, when another woman died from profuse bleeding during delivery.

Following public outcry, the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board revoked the hospital’s licence and cancelled Dr Mwaura’s operational permit.

However, the facility has since resumed operations. KMPDC CEO Dr David Kariuki confirmed that the 2019 closure was temporary, explaining that hospitals can reopen once they meet specified conditions.

A check of the KMPDC website shows the hospital is currently licensed to operate, with Dr Mwaura listed as a general surgeon.

St. Teresa Hospital has denied negligence, attributing Wanjiru’s death to postpartum haemorrhage.

In a statement, the facility claims Wanjiru arrived with lower abdominal pain and was found to be in active labour, necessitating an emergency C-section.

The hospital says placenta previa was discovered during surgery, and complications arose six hours later, prompting the referral to KNH.

“Our staff acted quickly and in accordance with professional standards. There was no instance of medical negligence,” the hospital stated, while announcing a comprehensive review of emergency preparedness protocols.

Wanyonyi disputes this account, maintaining that his wife was bleeding for hours without his knowledge and that no one officially informed him about the referral decision.

“My wife’s death was a direct result of negligence at St. Teresa’s. She was bleeding from around 2 PM until 10 PM, and nobody informed me,” he said.

The case raises concerns about healthcare oversight in Kenya’s private sector, particularly regarding facilities with documented histories of maternal deaths.

The fact that St. Teresa’s has been linked to two similar tragedies within six years highlights potential gaps in regulatory supervision and accountability mechanisms.

For families affected by such incidents, the regulatory system’s apparent inability to prevent recurring tragedies represents a fundamental failure in healthcare governance, leaving critical questions about patient safety and medical oversight unanswered.