The KZN MEC for Health has to pay R13.1m in damages to the mother of a now 10-year-old daughter who was born with brain damage at the Christ the King Hospital in Ixopo.

A Pretoria News report notes the KZN High Court (Pietermaritzburg) earlier found the MEC to be 100% liable for the damages which the mother had incurred on behalf of her child.

The child, who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, is totally dependent on others for her daily functioning. 

According to the mother, she was never told by the hospital that her child had suffered brain damage at birth.

It was only after her daughter’s eighth month that the diagnosis was made.

Experts also expressed their concern about the mother as the court was told that parents caring for children with cerebral palsy mostly had very little or no support.

There is no facet of the parents’ lives which is not affected by their children’s condition and the impact on their lives is severe.

The court was told that it was mostly the mothers of these children who carried the brunt. The court awarded the R13.1m to the mother for the child’s medical costs, as well as for her to adapt her home to make it more comfortable for the child.

The mother will now also be able to employ a caregiver to help her with the child and to send the child to a special school, as recommended by the experts.

The court was told that the child will never live a normal life, but these aids will simply make life a little easier.

Full Pretoria News report in The Star