PATIENCE Mantelane Machili went into the theatre to be cleaned and came out with one leg.
The 53-year-old woman from Atlantis in Cape Town alleges that she did not give permission to the hospital to have her leg amputated.
When the incident happened
The incident happened in 2020 and has left her traumatised to this day.
"My leg had some blisters, so I went to a local clinic here in Atlantis, but they transferred me to Somerset Hospital. When I got there, they told me I had to go into theatre the following day to have the blisters cleaned out," she said.
Patience gets shock of her life
The former security guard said she went in the theatre but when she came out, she felt severe pain in her leg. She asked the nurses to give her painkillers.
"I had not seen all this time that my leg had been cut off. I tried to touch it, but I felt there was nothing there. When I looked, I was shocked to find out that my left had been cut off without my permission," Patience said.
Patience said when she called her daughter to tell her about the incident, and she was also shocked as she also knew nothing about it.
"I am so hurt about what the hospital did to me. They should have at least explained to me what they were going to do," she said.
Department speaks
Department of Health and Wellness spokeswoman, Natalie Watlington, confirmed the incident.
"We can confirm that Patience Machili was admitted to the New Somerset Hospital on 20 January 2020 and underwent a surgical procedure to clean and treat a wound on 22nd of January 2020. During Ms Machili's treatment in theatre, she was diagnosed with necrotising fasciitis.
"This is a bacterial infection that spreads and leads to tissue death and is also known as flesh-eating disease. It needs urgent treatment as it spreads intervention as it spreads rapidly and can be fatal. Therefore, a lifesaving decision was made by our head of surgery to perform an amputation. Ms Machili signed consent that the surgical team who perform this treatment in theatre may carry out additional or alternative measures, including general anaesthesia if it is considered necessary. We believe that the right decision was made to save Ms Machili's life," Watlington said.
Watlington said the decision to amputate her leg was not taken lightly.
She said while Machili was in theatre, the surgical team called her daughter several times to inform her of the decision, but she could not be reached.
"Our head of department, in consultation with our medical consent manager on call, made the decision to proceed with the amputation in order to save Ms Machili's life. After the operation, she was informed of the process and why the decision had to be made.
"We recognised that this is a distressing experience for Ms Machili and offered counselling to her and her family. As part of the post-operative treatment plan, we offered further counselling and rehabilitation," she said.
More of Daily Sun:
