"Doctor ordered to pay relatives of woman who died during operation"

Njoki Ng’ethe, a mother of three, unexpectedly developed pregnancy complications on April 12, 2008...Mr Ng’ethe said his wife visited Dr. Akatu at his Elgon View Medical Cottage in Bungoma Town after she developed pregnancy complications. She knew Dr. Akatu’s clinic as he often attended to her. After an examination, the doctor recommended that she be admitted to the clinic since he needed to perform an emergency Caesarean section...He told the board that he was alarmed when he arrived at the hospital and found that there was a power outage and the generators were not working. One of the fundamental requirements of a theatre is uninterrupted power supply. Mr. Ng’ethe told the team investigating the cause of the death that he never signed the consent form allowing the hospital to carry out the operation...A nurse at the clinic broke the news to him — his wife died during the operation. Mrs. Ng’ethe, who had eaten chicken and ugali before the operation choked to death...Dr. Akatu told the board that Mrs Ng’ethe arrived at the clinic at 3pm and on examining her, he discovered that she was “draining liquor”, which was not good for the unborn baby, hence the need for surgery...“He then decided to undertake a Caesarean section but gave the patient and her husband time to discuss and give him the consent to proceed,” says the board’s report.