A woman identified as Sunday Cortina Akello 24 last Saturday night died after spending a hours without medical care in the delivery ward at Gulu Regional Referral hospital. 

The hospital source who asked not to be named because of fear of losing his job said that Ms Akello died while delivering having been abandoned by midwives without any medical attention. 

“The midwives are lazy and if you do not pay money they take their time to help delivering mothers,” he said “She cried and cried and died.”

Meanwhile the vice Chairman of Gulu Local government and councilor for Awach Mr. Christopher Opio Ateke and Bungatira Sub-county Councilor Mr. Belington Ongwec stormed the hospital after a tip off from one of the nurses and found the wards without midwives on duty.

“We recorded cases of harassment and absenteeism from duties,” Oteka said, “they report for few hours and leave for home,” he added.

Akello hailed from Bar Mogo village in Bobi Sub-county in Gulu district according to Isaac Newton Ojok a relative of the deceased. 

“We called the Medical Superintendent to brief us on the hospital status but he failed to appear, we are demanding for answers for the last time,” Ojok who is vice District Chairman said on Monday. 

He said that the act violates professional medical ethics and the district will not tolerate medical officials who do not perform to the standard require of them. 

This is the second major incident of a mother dying during delivery due to negligence by medical workers.

In September last year, a pregnant mother lost her newly born baby after midwives poorly cut and tied the umbilical cord of the child. The workers were not reprimanded nor cautioned. 

At the same time, mortuary attendants are being accused of soliciting money from relatives of deceased patients to access dead bodies. 

Relatives have accused the heads of Mortuary Mr Boniface Okabo, George Oroma and one Roscoe of being behind the vice. Okabo declined to comment. 

The Medical Superintendent at the hospital Dr Anthony Onyach who is away from the hospital on officials duties said that he was unaware of the incident, when contacted for comments. 

“It’s a shock to me and if we find that such allegations are true we will deal with the persons diligently,” Dr Onyach said.

Recently medical workers across the country went on strike to demand salary increments and poor working conditions from the government.