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A Perth father has been left grieving and desperate for answers after his wife died days after giving birth to twins at Fiona Stanley Hospital.
Sandeep Mann is now caring for the newborns and his six-year-old son after his wife Monika Mann died on May 15, the day after she was discharged from hospital. She had complained of abdominal pain in the days following the births.
Monika Mann died after giving birth to twins – girl Bhavika and boy Bavishya. She also had a six-year-old son Rivan.
Monika had an exceptionally high-risk pregnancy given she had rheumatic heart disease and a mechanical mitral valve in her heart. She was one of around five people with the heart valve to give birth each year in WA.
Mann has been told the hospital does not know why his wife died as they are waiting on the post-mortem. A Critical Incident Investigation Report written by a panel of senior doctors concluded there were no care-delivery issues that contributed to his wife’s death.
When her abdomen was opened after she was rushed back via ambulance more than three litres of watery blood was drained.
The Mann family reached out to advocate Suresh Rajan, who also spoke publicly for the parents of Aishwarya Aswath, who died at Perth Children’s Hospital after delays in responding to her deteriorating condition.
Rajan questioned the findings of the report into Monika’s death. He called the conclusion “completely illogical.”
“How do you absolve the hospital of any responsibility when no cause of death has been identified?” he asked.
“They can’t tell us how or why she died.
“She gave birth to twins via C-Section, and they were delivered well, but in the days after she was in considerable pain and discomfort.”
Rajan said she was dealing with bloating and discomfort in her stomach and told her husband that it felt like the twins were still inside her.
She was given painkillers, including Tramadol, to little effect, but was able to walk around with assistance despite the pain.
On May 14, she was discharged from hospital. The hospital report says she was well, but complained of an uncomfortable mattress.
On May 15 at 2am she woke in pain and her breathing was raspy. Mann called an ambulance around two hours later after he realised she was not getting any better.
Paramedics told him to follow behind them in the car and that his wife had a strong pulse.
But while he was filling up their car at a petrol station he received a call telling him his wife’s heart had stopped, but that they could revive her. By 7.45am he was told she had died.
The SAC 1 report from the hospital, handed to Mann and Rajan on Tuesday, reveals the pain Monika experienced after childbirth was thought to be “on the upper end of normal but not so extreme as to consider a change to normal post-operative care.”
It also revealed that an abdominal x-ray was considered but not performed. Her deterioration detection score remained at zero for the entire time she was in hospital.
By day five, the report states Monika wanted to be discharged as she found the bed uncomfortable, but this request was delayed by a day as a dose of medication she was taking to manage blood clots needed to be altered.
The following day she was still struggling to lie flat, and a firmer mattress had not been sourced. Her medication dose was altered again, and she was considered medically fit to be discharged.
The report states it is believed likely the cause of death was an intra-abdominal haemorrhage.
South Metropolitan Health Service director of clinical services Dr Mark Monaghan extended his deepest sympathies to the family and said the hospital continued to support them.
“Our review into this is ongoing and we will continue to communicate openly and transparently with the family; their feedback is an important part of this process.”
Fiona Stanley Hospital has offered to reconvene a new panel to conduct another SAC 1 review, which Mann has agreed to be a part of with support from Rajan.
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