The primary school teacher was admitted at the Karatina Level 4 Hospital on February 13, 2020, after sustaining severe burns when a pressure cooker exploded on her.
A week after her admission, Ngonyo concluded that help was not forthcoming and chose to escape from the hospital.
Mothers with their newborn babies at Consolata Mathari Hospital in Nyeri on January 2, 2017.
Daily Nation
Speaking to the Sunday Nation on February 23, 2020, the patient explained the circumstances preceding her daring decision.
“I was in great pain for the whole week, the wounds had started rotting but they [hospital staff] kept telling me not to take any food in preparation for an operation, I felt so depressed when it became apparent no operation was forthcoming, so I decided to sneak out, ” said Lucy Nyongo.
Lucy’s mother, Charity Gathimba, revealed that a security guard from the hospital called her on Thursday, February 20, 2020, to inform her of Lucy’s disappearance.
It was at this point that she summoned her relatives and they began the search for the missing patient.
Lucy got 15 kilometers from the hospital before she collapsed. It was here that her relatives found her unconscious frame on the ground.
Her relatives decided to take her back to the hospital but the staff were reluctant to readmit her. Lucy made further claims that upon her readmission, certain hospital staff stepped to get her to sign a discharge form.
Lucy was finally taken to the theatre for her burn wounds after the authorities learned that the media had learned about the incident.
Complaints about the poor services and facilities in public offices have abounded, with multiple calls made for the improvement of services.
Doctors protest outside the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi on January 26, 2017.
Daily Nation
A report by the Nation on March 30, 2019, highlighted an account by a nurse who had to resort to using a torch while handling deliveries.
The particular hospital had neither a sink nor drainage and it sometimes fell on the nurse to buy water.
A survey by the Nation highlighted that patients underwent indignities such as sharing beds and had to battle the lack of drugs when they sought treatment in public hospitals.
