374 newborns abandoned at Gauteng hospitals in three years
An average of 11 babies have been abandoned every month in Gauteng hospitals over the last three years. While the cost of caring for these babies is about R2000 a day‚ what is more important‚ the Democratic Alliance’s Jack Bloom said‚ is “that so many mothers feel the need to abandon their babies”.“Prevention efforts should be broad-based and tackle the societal problems that break the natural bond between mother and infant‚” he said on Monday.A total of 374 newborns were abandoned at hospitals in the last three years - 147 in 2013‚ 124 in 2014 and 108 babies for 2015 so far.Krugersdorp’s Leratong Hospital accounted for over a quarter - 100 - of the babies‚ and “currently‚ there are 52 abandoned babies that have been abandoned for more than a month”‚ Bloom said.Babies are left at hospitals for a variety of reasons‚ including teenage pregnancy and unwanted pregnancy‚ lack of family support‚ poverty‚ deserted by the father‚ fear of parents and resentment.Gauteng Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu told the legislature that that it was dealing with the problem by:- Ensuring that parents can be identified and contact details are confirmed; - Giving educational talks on contraceptives and choice of termination at community level; - Referring mothers to social workers to discuss alternative options like adoption; and- Offering family therapy to deal with the situation...
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