(MENAFN- The Post) THE Mokhotlong Government Hospital has agreed to pay M200 000 as compensation to the husband of a deceased patient after a doctor unlawfully tampered with the corpse.
There is a deed of settlement between the hospital and Jacob Palime, the deceased woman's husband.
Jacob Palime rushed to the High Court in Tšifa
Mali last year after the hospital failed to explain why the doctor had tampered with his wife's corpse at a private mortuary behind his back.
His wife's body had been taken to the Lesotho Funeral Services.
Palime lives in Phahameng in Mokhotlong.
In his court papers, Palime was demanding M500 000 in compensation from the hospital“for unlawful invasion, intrusion and interference with” his rituals and rights over his dead wife.
He informed the court that his wife died in September 2020 at Mokhotlong Hospital.
“All requisite documentation pertaining to her release to Lesotho Funeral Services were effected and ultimately the deceased was accordingly transferred to the mortuary,” Palime said.
The court heard that Palime's family was subsequently informed about the wife's death.
The family however learnt that one doctor, acting in his professional capacity, went to the mortuary the next day and tampered with the corpse.
The doctor subsequently conducted certain tests on the corpse without the knowledge of family members.
Palime said their attempts to get an explanation from the hospital as to the purpose of the tests and the name of the doctor had failed to yield results.
“It remained questionable and therefore incomprehensible as to what actually was the purpose or rationale behind conducting such anonymous and secret tests,” he said.
Palime told the court that the whole thing left him“in an unsettled state of mind for a long time”.
He said his family, which has its traditions and culture rooted in the respect for their departed loved ones, regards and considers Mokhotlong Hospital's conduct as an unlawful invasion, intrusion and interference with his rituals and rights over his deceased spouse.
“This is more-so because the hospital had all the opportunity to have conducted any or such alleged tests immediately upon demise of the deceased while still within its area of jurisdiction and not after her release to the mortuary,” he said.
Palime said despite incessant demands, the hospital has failed, refused, ignored and neglected to cooperate with him“to amicably solve this unwarranted state of affairs”.
Palime told the court that there were no claims against the Lesotho Funeral Service as they had cooperated and compensated him for wrongly allowing the doctor to perform tests on the corpse without knowledge or presence of one of the family members.
'Malimpho Majoro
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