By: Leroy Smith

Dead: Evita Singh

[www.inewsguyana.com] – Evita Singh, a mother of two, died early yesterday morning, two days after her unborn child died inside her while she was a maternity patient at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).

iNews in an interview with the dead woman’s relatives on Sunday learnt that the 34 – year – old went into the hospital on Monday last and by Wednesday she had started experiencing problems while in the care of doctors at the institution.

The woman who was not ready to deliver, according to relatives, was being treated at the hospital for the symptoms of the Chikungunya Virus.

Relatives told iNews that the woman died as a result of severe internal bleeding brought on by six Cytotec pills which were inserted into her to induce labour even though she did not indicate that she was having labour pains.

It was reported by relatives that the dosage which were administered to the woman was way above the normal amount and according to persons who are familiar with the use of the pill which is also administered to animals, six pills are not even administered to an animal under no circumstances.

The pills reportedly caused the woman to bleed internally and burst the baby’s head and her internal organs. Her uterus was reportedly split into half; relatives say they were told by at least one doctor.

iNews was told that a health worker who was in the room between Thursday night and Friday morning when the woman began experiencing severe discomfort told relatives that the pills were given to the woman for her to deliver so that they can treat her for the Chikungunya Virus.

They said that the pills were administered because the doctors were not willing to perform a C-Section on the woman although they knew she did not have enough passage for the baby.

“Doctors were not willing to do a C-Section and when they finally realized that the woman was still having a hard time after they administered the pills they decided to cut her. But by that time, when the woman was taken to the operation room she could not be operated on since someone was already in the room and on the machine,” iNews was told.

Doctors reportedly told relatives that they realized that the baby’s heart rate had dropped but there was nothing that they could have done since they had to get the machine to operate on her and remove the child. They had to wait fifteen minutes and by that time the child was believed to have already died inside the woman.

Family members are not taking the death lightly since according to them they have evidence and witnesses who can prove that doctors were misleading them on the condition of the woman and the events leading up to her death.

They told iNews that one doctor who telephoned them on Friday morning when the woman went into her distress informed them that “their relative loose her baby because of carelessness and laziness;” pointing to the failure and reluctance of the workers on shift at the time to have the woman do a C-T scan.

[www.inewsguyana.com] –

The World Health Organisation (WHO) in its first global report on suicide prevention revealed that Guyana is the country with the highest estimated suicide rate for 2012 globally with Suriname ranking as the sixth highest.

According to the report, “Suicide rates in this Region show a first peak among the young, remain at the same level for other age groups and rise again in elderly men. In high-income countries, hanging accounts for 50% of suicides, and firearms are the second most common method, accounting for 18% of suicides.”

The WHO further noted that the relatively high proportion of suicides by firearms in high-income countries is primarily driven by high-income countries in the Americas where firearms account for 46% of all suicides; in other high-income countries firearms account for only 4.5% of all suicides.

The report noted that more than 800, 000 people die by suicide every year – around one person every 40 seconds. Some 75% of suicides occur in low- and middle-income countries.

Pesticide poisoning, hanging and firearms are among the most common methods of suicide globally. Evidence from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the United States and a number of European countries reveals that limiting access to these means can help prevent people dying by suicide.

The report noted that another key to reducing deaths by suicide is a commitment by national governments to the establishment and implementation of a coordinated plan of action.

Currently, only 28 countries are known to have national suicide prevention strategies. Globally, suicide rates are highest in people aged 70 years and over.

In some countries, however, the highest rates are found among the young. Notably, suicide is the second leading cause of death in 15-29 year-olds globally.

“This report is a call for action to address a large public health problem which has been shrouded in taboo for far too long” said Dr Margaret Chan, Director-General of WHO.

According to the report, generally, more men die by suicide than women. In richer countries, three times as many men die by suicide than women. Men aged 50 years and over are particularly vulnerable.