North West Hospital Probe Into Newborn Babies Kept in Cardboard Boxes Results in 5 Managers Being Transferred

• The preliminary investigation into the incident where four babies were kept in cardboard boxes at Mahikeng Provincial Hospital has yielded some results.
• Four managers on duty on the day of the incident have been transferred to other hospitals pending the outcome of a full-scale investigation.
• North West Health MEC Madoda Sambatha said the incident boiled down to failed management function.

MAHIKENG – Five managers from the Mahikeng Provincial Hospital have been transferred to other medical facilities following a preliminary probe.

The transfers follow an incident on Saturday, 20 May, in which four newborn babies were kept in cardboard boxes instead of incubators or crib beds.

Management initially said it was not notified about the incident on the day it happened.

The North West Department of Health released a statement that the report from the probe identified the five managers who were temporarily relocated to allow the subsequent investigation to unfold unhindered.

North West Health MEC say cardboard box incident result of failed management function

North West Health MEC Madoda Sambatha reportedly noted several failures from the preliminary investigation.

One was on the day of the incident, the hospital only had 47 cribs and incubators, while 56 newborn babies were delivered. Sambatha said the admission of more mothers than the hospital could cater for was a failed management function.