Death of a Kenyan woman during childbirth in US leaves family in shock
Angel Wanja Mbatia, who died at a US hospital shortly after giving birth to her daughter, named Riley Wanja. Ms Mbatia's family and the Kenyan community in Atlanta are in shock over her death. PHOTO | COURTESY
What you need to know:
- Soon after little Riley Mbatia was born, Ms Mbatia, 34, developed complications, which led to profuse bleeding.
- The Nation learnt that Ms Mbatia had no known medical complications prior to her hospital visit on the fateful day.
- The deceased had just moved back to Atlanta to join her boyfriend after living in Savannah, Georgia, where she used to work.
A Kenyan family is seeking answers after their daughter died moments after giving birth to a bouncing baby girl in an Atlanta hospital.
Two weeks ago, nine-month pregnant Wanja Mbatia developed labour pains and was rushed to the nearby Kennestone Hospital for what was expected to be a normal delivery, but what followed left the family devastated.
Soon after little Riley Mbatia was born, Ms Mbatia, 34, developed complications, which led to profuse bleeding.
She developed severe haemorrhage and was rushed to the emergency room, where a blood transfusion was administered before an emergency surgery was carried out.
Unfortunately, she never made it, as she was pronounced dead Sunday morning about 3am.
Back in the delivery room, Riley slept peacefully, oblivious of the fact she would leave the hospital without her mother.
SEEKING DETAILS
News of Ms Mbatia’s death jolted the family and the Kenyan community in the United States.
“The entire Kenyan community here is yet to come to terms with this devastating news,” said Washington Gichuru, a family friend.
Members of the family said they were seeking details of the circumstances that led to Ms Mbatia’s death, which they described as “highly unusual.”
The Nation learnt that Ms Mbatia had no known medical complications prior to her hospital visit on the fateful day.
“She had endured the pregnancy without any medical issues. She was jovial and even cracked jokes en route to the hospital,” said Grace Mbatia, Wanja’s younger sister.
Mr Gichuru, who is coordinating the funeral arrangements, said the family had engaged a private pathologist to perform “an independent post-mortem and establish the real cause of (Ms Mbatia's) death.” He added that it was the family’s wish to have closure on the matter.
“We are not leaving anything to chance, but we don’t want to speculate until the autopsy results are out,” he told the Nation by phone.
JUST GRADUATED
A spokesman for Wellstar Health System, which manages Kennestone Hospital, confirmed that Ms Mbatia was admitted at the hospital on July 27 but would not divulge any further information, citing state and federal privacy laws and respect for the family.
Ms Mbatia came to the United States in 2007 for further studies. She had graduated with a master's degree in computer science from Southern Polytechnic State University in the outskirts of Atlanta.
She had lived in Savannah, Georgia, where she used to work, and had just moved back to Atlanta to join her boyfriend.
“My sister had big dreams and was very proud of the career path she had chosen. All that has been cut short,” said the sister amid sobs.
Ms Mbatia's parents and other relatives were expected to arrive in the US on Thursday for the funeral, slated for Saturday at Kennesaw Memorial Park in Marietta, Georgia.
