Trauma for 'abandoned' babies immense
Hospital merely temporary haven
In most cases, the mother disappears, leaving the baby in the hospital.
The trauma of lying in a hospital for months and in some cases for more than a year, for days on end without any nurturing, love and attention is massive for babies and toddlers who in many cases are simply left there."It's worse for them to live with this trauma than if they were to die," says private social worker Catrien du Toit about the babies who are currently housed in the Katutura hospital because there is allegedly no other safe home for them.
However, Du Toit, who also worked with the state for a while, emphasises that a hospital is only a temporary place of safety to house neglected, abused and abandoned babies.
"It's only for a night or two. There is no 'nurturing' here, the best interest of the child is never applied," she says.
According to Du Toit, one scenario could be that the social workers employed by the Ministry of Health and Social Services did not refer the relevant cases to the ministry in the presidency responsible for gender equality, poverty alleviation and social welfare's social workers.
"This means they may not know about these cases in the hospital. It is not referred and the social workers are therefore not actively investigating the case," she explained. According to her, it is during this investigation that the social worker finds out if the baby has relatives or guardians where the baby could be placed.
"In many cases, these babies are simply left here and the mother or a family member never returns."
Can assist
Du Toit says she is in a position to look for a safe home for these babies.
“I can ask someone and help! I can be notified if there is a case that is not being investigated; people can't just keep quiet! These babies are being failed and the trauma is immense."
According to her, she wants to "work so actively" that a person will call her immediately if a case is not investigated or a baby is not immediately transferred to a place of safety.
"It's a matter of 'here they are now', but what next? There is no plan B. The babies must be taken out of there and it must be prevented from happening again."
Du Toit says Windhoek and the Khomas region have the most social workers of all the regions. "So, can you imagine what it looks like in other state hospitals in regions where there are far fewer social workers?"
According to her, the babies who are left in a state hospital for months often end up there due to neglect or abuse. "But in 99% of the cases, the mother has disappeared."
She explains that the Ministry of Health compiles a report on a baby in question for the Ministry of Gender Equality, which includes how long the baby has been in the hospital, that the family could not be traced and that no one claimed the baby and that he or she is "medically cleared".
"A baby is placed in the hospital if they have medical needs. You don't put a healthy child in a hospital, certainly not for months and months. An example is a case where I removed a baby from a drug house who was severely dehydrated. The baby was admitted, treated, discharged and placed in a safe home."
Safe havens
Du Toit emphasises that people can also provide a temporary place of safety and not just well-known safe homes, such as the Hope for Life Foundation in Windhoek and the Ruach Elohim Foundation in Swakopmund.
"I do a 'screening' and home visit and the verification."
She refers to the Register on Adoptable Children and Prospective Adoptive Parents which she says is "useless".
"There are more children than places of safety, but that is no excuse. As a social worker, you also have to do the recruiting of people who can help."
The screening process is the same for people as well as places of safety. This includes the submission of certified copies of, among other things, a medical and psychological report, as well as three written testimonials from friends and colleagues. The above is handed in to a social worker, after which several consultations and a home visit follow. A decision then follows as to whether or not the person is suitable as a temporary foster parent or an adoptive parent.
The good news is that a home has been found for each of the babies reported by Republikein thanks to Ronel Peters' Ruach Elohim Foundation in Swakopmund.
For any inquiries about the registration process or how to help the babies in any way, contact Du Toit via WhatsApp at 081 449 5227. – [email protected]