A mother of two has opened criminal cases against a surgeon and his assistant after claiming her operation at a private Johannesburg facility last December was “botched”.
Hlengiwe Mbambo was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022 and advised to induce menopause so her hormones could stave off cancer cells. However, reports City Press, she opted to remove her uterus.
Her complications arose when it was found that, after the womb removal, the surgeon and assistant surgeon failed to attach the ureters, the tubes connecting the kidneys to the bladder, to enable urination.
She apparently also later discovered that the assistant doctor was not registered with the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA).
In a letter, the hospital said the surgeon was a gynaecologist in private practice and not employed by the hospital, and that it had escalated the matter to its head office – but that the doctor “practised for his own account”.
“(The doctor) has practising privileges at the hospital and …is a gynaecologist in private practice… and not employed by the hospital.”
Regarding the “unqualified assistant”, the facility also said health practitioners who worked at the hospital submitted proof of registration with the HPCSA every year.
The hospital does not hold itself accountable for Mbambo’s surgery or the fact that the assistant doctor, Michael Acheampong, is not registered with the HPCSA.
It said it was the surgeon’s responsibility to ensure everything was above board.
The hospital added that its investigation revealed that Acheampong was a “foreign-qualified doctor, whose registration status is being investigated by the HPCSA”.
Police confirmed a case of attempted murder and impersonating a medical practitioner had been opened and investigations were under way.
Mbambo told City Press last month she was planning to have her left kidney removed this month as a result of the complications.
News24 article – Hospital distances itself from fake doctor who botched operation (Open access)
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