A woman who gave birth to a baby girl at King Edward Hospital in Durban believes she was given the wrong baby. That’s despite receiving three separate DNA results confirming she was the mother.

She says she gave birth to a healthy baby girl and nurses took her baby away to clean, however, hours later, they came back and told her the child had died.
She says she wants answers as to what really happened to her baby.

What was supposed to be a joyous occasion for a 38-year-old Ntuzuma mother, turned out to be a nightmare. Khumbuzile Bhede was looking forward to welcoming the new member of the family in March this year. She went to King Edward Hospital in the morning and delivered a baby girl at 8 in the evening.
Bhede says she heard her baby’s loud cry before nurses showed her the baby for her to confirm before taking her to be cleaned. She says that was the last time she saw her baby.

“For the whole night my baby was not with me. At 12 in the afternoon the following day, nurses came to the ward pulled me aside and told me that they did everything they could but the baby died. How? When? I wasn’t even told that there was something wrong with my baby because when I gave birth everything was fine.”

Bhede says the three DNA tests she has done have come back positive, saying the dead baby is hers. Despite this, she believes everyone is trying to make her accept a baby that’s not hers as there are so many unanswered questions.

“When I got to the mortuary, I found this baby that looked older than a newborn and the fact that they prevented me from seeing my baby before it went to the mortuary and the 4 hours not knowing where the baby was – these things show that there was something suspicious that was done in hospital because everyone has a right to view the body before it’s taken away so you’ll get closure.”

She says she has been waiting for an autopsy report from the police since March. Police have confirmed that they’ve opened an inquest.

KwaZulu-Natal SAPS spokesperson, Robert Netshiunda says they are investigating and awaiting autopsy results.

“The mother also demanded to conduct private DNA test and her wishes were granted. The results of the privately conducted DNA test prove that the baby was hers. Further DNA tests through investigations also declared that it was her child that died. Investigations into what might have led to the death of the baby are ongoing. We are investigating it and awaiting autopsy results to confirm the cause of death.”

The KwaZulu-Natal Health Department says they are investigating, however, they cannot comment as the case is under police investigation.

DNA Testing | Mother claims dead baby is not hers: