This archive report was first published on 8 October 2019.
Homabay Woman Infected with HIV After Blood Transfusion ¶
On February 19, 2019, Lilian Atieno, a 31-year-old woman from Homabay County, was rushed to Sigowet Sub-county Hospital due to dizziness and splitting headaches. She was heavy with her fourth child and was diagnosed with anemia, which put her pregnancy at risk.
At the hospital, doctors determined that Atieno needed an urgent blood transfusion. She received the blood on the same day and was discharged three days later. However, this blood transfusion would change her life forever.
Two months later, when Atieno gave birth at Rachuonyo Level Four Hospital, she underwent a routine HIV test. Despite having been tested three times throughout her pregnancy and ante-natal visits, Atieno was shocked to find out that she was HIV positive.
Atieno was devastated by the news and believed that she must have contracted the virus through the blood transfusion she received earlier. The doctors at the hospital confirmed her fears and contacted Sigowet Hospital to investigate the incident.
Atieno and her husband, Elisha Opiyo, filed a case against the hospital for a botched blood transfusion. However, the lead doctor at Sigowet Hospital dismissed their concerns, stating that the incident was an accident and that they should not make a big deal out of it.
Atieno's case raises concerns about the state of blood banks and procedures followed before transfusion in Kenya. The Kenya National Blood Transfusion Services (KNBTS) distanced itself from the claims, stating that every donation is quarantined and tested before it is approved for hospital distribution.
Atieno has been living with her mother in a single-roomed house in Nairobi's Athi River in her pursuit of justice. She has been taking antiretroviral pills and TB prevention drugs, but struggles to cope with the side effects and the emotional trauma she has experienced.
