The Karen Hospital has taken to court one of its patients who has been abandoned by her family over a Sh23 million medical bill.
The Hospital wants Jackyline Nelima Mutaki who was admitted on February 16, 2019, to be transferred to KNH or home-based care.
In a case filed in court, they argue that they have been unable to trace Nelima’s family for a long time and the bill keeps accumulating.
Nelima had gone to Karen Hospital for an elective CS procedure but there were complications that led to her being bedridden and incapacitated.
“The routine preparation for CS spinal anaesthesia was administered but she had complications,” the hospital says.
In an affidavit to court CEO Dr Juliet Gikonyo says due to the complications she was transferred to the HDU and since last year she has been undergoing physiotherapy and treatment for recurrent chest pain.
“The respondent has been undergoing physiotherapy and occupational therapy to date which activities have caused the hospital bill to skyrocket a tune of Sh 23,700,549,” the affidavit reads.
The hospital wants the court to allow them to discharge Nelima for home-based care or alternatively to grant consent for her referral to KNH.
This is because she is indisposed and there is no family to give consent.
They want to transfer her to KNH which according to them is affordable but they have been unable to secure consent for the referral to a public hospital.
Gikonyo says they resolved through the advice of the Medical Advisory Committee to place her under home-based care but her family members have abandoned her in hospital and any attempts to secure a meeting with them has been unfruitful.
The Kenya Health Sector Referral Implementation Guidelines requires consent before a patient is referred to another facility or taken to home-based care.
“The hospital bill is too high for the patient or family to pay and Karen Hospital can no longer afford to keep her in their facility,” reads the court documents.
The case came up for hearing today before Justice James Makau who had directed the hospital to serve Nelima who has been sued.
However, the judge ruled that the case cannot proceed to hearing because Nelima could not be served with the petition due to her physical condition.
Since there is a stalemate in the case, the judge said he will here an application to amend the case because Nelima can’t proceed with the case in her condition.
The case will be mentioned on September 23.
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