What should’ve been one of the happiest moments of her life turned into a nightmare when a Brazilian woman’s baby was killed during labor after her doctor accidentally pierced her neck with her long nails.
The incident occurred at the Albert Sabin maternity hospital in Salvador, Bahia, last Thursday (October 31).
The family of the mother, Lilliane Ribeiro, is denouncing the hospital for obstetric violence after the doctor responsible for the birth botched the procedure, causing a fatal injury to the baby and reportedly fleeing the scene.
“She ran away and left my daughter at the mercy of death. That’s not something you do,” Ribeiro said, crying in an interview with local outlet TV Bahia.
A Brazilian mother is denouncing her hospital after a doctor pierced her baby’s neck with her long nails during labor, causing fatal wounds
Ribeiro recounted how her baby was healthy and that she was in good spirits in the days leading up to her giving birth. She attended two different units, one public and one private, making an effort economically so that her daughter would have the best care possible.
Doctors at the private clinic warned her that the baby was too large to be safely delivered through natural birth and recommended she have a cesarean section instead.
The public establishment, however, dismissed this recommendation and allegedly forced the mother to deliver the baby naturally, which caused complications that eventually resulted in the doctor applying unnecessary force, rupturing her gloves, and damaging the infant’s neck with her nails.
Ribeiro explained how she was left waiting for 40 minutes to be treated by doctors with her water already broken and fluid running down her leg. When they finally came for her, she said personnel mistreated her, warning her to be silent.
“The doctor who did my prenatal care said that when I got there, I should be careful about how I spoke, not to shout, because they ‘mistreat people who complain,'” she stated.
When delivering the baby, Ribeiro said that the doctors told her that she would be “torn to pieces” and to keep pushing if she wanted her baby to live.
Bahia’s authorities have taken the baby’s body for an autopsy and have launched an investigation to determine legal responsibilities
The hospital’s version of events is that the baby was stillborn, a notion which Ribeiro and her family thoroughly deny.
“How did my daughter come out of me dead if she was alive before entering the delivery room? How did I feel her move? Why did the doctor show my husband her little head moving? Why did they try to resuscitate her? My daughter was not dead,” the mother explained.
Authorities have taken the baby to Brazil’s Forensic Medical Institute (IML) for an autopsy, launching an investigation alongside it that is expected to conclude in 30 days.
The Bahia State Health Department issued a statement related to the case.
“We express our deep consternation regarding the incident at the Albert Sabin maternity hospital,” it read. “We reiterate that our priority is the safety and well-being of all those involved, including patients, family members, and health professionals.”
Some say the doctor should be charged with murder
