KNH refutes claims 14 newborns died during power blackout
Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) has refuted reports that claimed 14 newborns died in its incubators on Wednesday due to a power blackout at the hospital.
Blogger Robert Alai had claimed in a Facebook post that he received an anonymous tip from a man who alleged the loss of his brother’s child – who was born prematurely at seven months – at the hospital’s incubator after a blackout.
The anonymous man claimed 14 newborns died at the referral hospital during the Wednesdy blackout.
“My brother’s wife had a premature birth at KNH. Which is not strange considering it was a 7 months. The babies were kept in the incubators for observation from Sunday, all was well and the infant was responding well in fact he was breastfeeding,” read part of the post on Alai’s Facebook page.
‘NO BACK UP’
“But yesterday (Wednesday) there was a blackout at KNH and apparently they did not have back up. So the baby died. What was shocking is that 14 infants were affected. Is that not negligence?? If in one day 14 infants died. How many more don’t we know?”
However, KNH administrators refuted the claims saying the hospital has four standby generators to serve critical areas.
“Reference is made to a tweet by blogger Robert Alai concerning death of 14 babies at KNH’s Newborn Unit on 13th September 2017 purportedly occasioned by power blackout,” responded KNH on their Facebook page.
“KNH has four standby generators to serve critical areas among them Newborn Unit as well as ICU and no power blackout was witnessed on the said date. All babies at Newborn Unit are safe. Kindly treat the information as unfounded lie.”