Western Cape Health has launched an inquiry into Groote Schuur Hospital (GSH) after accusations of negligence and emotional abuse by a patient transferred there from New Somerset Hospital for a procedure, who endured a “traumatic experience”.
Taryn Hearne (35), who is being treated for pneumonia, was transferred to GSH on 15 April for a liver abscess drainage procedure. Instead of returning the same day as scheduled, she remained at the hospital for more than 24 hours – without pain medication, food, or water, she said.
Hearne claimed she was awake during the procedure, and despite voicing concerns about a non-functional drip before the operation, her warnings were dismissed, reports IOL.
What followed, she said, was an agonising ordeal. A doctor who was struggling to perform the procedure called in a second doctor, who then took over.
During the intervention, Hearne alleges that the doctor deliberately aggravated her pain, telling her to “scream again for me” as she sobbed in distress.
A female nurse reportedly apologised for the doctor’s conduct throughout.
After the procedure, Hearne said she was moved “like livestock”, with her hospital bed banging into walls and other equipment, before being left for hours in a corridor awaiting a transfer back to Somerset Hospital.
“Staff just ignored me. I hadn’t eaten. I wasn’t offered pain relief and wasn’t even offered water.
“I even begged strangers in scrubs for help, only to be told there was nothing they could do because the doctor didn’t write anything in my file.”
Despite ongoing communication from her family to hospital officials, including several emails to Western Cape Health, Hearne was only transferred back to New Somerset Hospital after 3pm the next day.
Dwayne Evans, spokesperson for the Western Cape Department of Health & Wellness said: “We are deeply concerned by … what happened and appreciate the opportunity to respond.
“Groote Schuur Hospital confirms receiving a complaint … and acknowledged receipt the next working day.
“A multidisciplinary investigation, led by our quality assurance (QA) team with the relevant medical managers, is already under way.”
Evans said the department had escalated the complaint for urgent review.
“Our consent and pain-management guidelines require clinicians to explain procedures, offer adequate analgesia or conscious sedation, and pause whenever a conscious patient signals discomfort.”
Allegations of unprofessional conduct were treated seriously, with potential outcomes ranging from internal disciplinary steps to referrals to the Health Professions Council of South Africa, he added.
The investigation is expected to be finalised within 25 working days, with findings to be shared with Hearne’s family by 20 May.
Evans acknowledged there had been a backlog in ambulance availability on the day in question, and that “a surge in high-acuity calls placed unusual strain on critical-care ambulances”. A full audit of the EMS log is under way.
A traumatised Hearne has since been discharged from hospital.
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