Family of Tatenda Mukwata left waiting for answers after mother’s death

Conor Murphy, solicitor, and the family of the late Zimbabwean native Tatenda Mukwata at Tralee Court. Pictured (l-r): Catherine Mukwata (mother of the late Tatenda), baby Eva Mukwata (Tatenda Mukwata's baby daughter), Conor Murphy, Tatenda Mukwata's daughters Munashe, Rutendo, and Sherley. Picture: Domnick Walsh/Eye Focus LTD.

The family of a woman who died after giving birth to a healthy baby in University Hospital Kerry is distressed by the ongoing delay in finalising a review of her death.

Zimbabwean native Tatenda Mukwata died in University Hospital Kerry in Tralee on April 21, 2022.

Ms Mukwata was a resident at the Atlantic Lodge direct provision centre in Kenmare and had been granted permission to stay in Ireland shortly before she died. An inquest into her death, held last September, returned a verdict of death by medical misadventure.

The jury found that her death was “probably preventable”, noting that misdiagnosis was followed by “a failure to investigate other possible differential misdiagnoses”.

Tatenda Mukwata died at University Hospital Kerry, after giving birth to a healthy baby.

A review of her death was established in September 2022 and was expected to be finalised within 125 days.

In a letter received on Friday, the family was told that the review commissioner, general manager of UHK, Mary Fitzgerald, could not accept the draft report from the review team.

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Mrs Fitzgerald said: “I await assurance from the external review team that staff members participating in or affected by the outcome of the review process have been provided with an opportunity to review the draft report and provide feedback in line with fair procedures and natural justice as set out under HSE Incident Management Framework (2000).” 

Mrs Fitzgerald said she “again” offered her sincere apology on behalf of the hospital for the delays.

She said she now hopes that the report will be available to the family next week.

Solicitor Conor Murphy said that Tatenda’s mother Catherine and daughter Rutendo have “always been very anxious to find out what exactly happened to Tatenda in UHK Tralee in April 2022”. 

He said: “They could not be there, Rutendo was with her younger sisters in direct provision in Kenmare, Catherine was in England. Both were waiting for the wonderful news of the new arrival. Rutendo was brought to Tralee in a Garda car, expecting to meet her mother and baby sister.

"So they were not there when Tatenda bled to death, and processes like reviews are vital both in helping them process the tragedy and filling in the gaps in their knowledge.” 

Apologies 'cut and pasted'

He said that they are hoping that the review report will be able to provide them with more information about Tatenda’s death than her inquest could.

He added: “So the failure to receive that report is extremely distressing for them, and the apologies and expressions of regret cut and pasted from one letter to another really don’t do anything for them.

"The repeated assurances that the report would be delivered by January 2023, by October 2023, by December 2023, and the repeated failures to deliver on those assurances have added greatly to their trauma.

"This is a series of let-downs for a family who have already been let down by the HSE in the most awful way imaginable.” 

 The HSE has been contacted for comment.