Nigerian woman, her newly-born baby allegedly detained in Indian hospital since 2015
– The Nigerian woman was allegedly detained for her inability to pay up her hospital bills
– Although she is claiming she is confined to one of the hospital’s rooms, the hospital management says they did not detain her and the baby
A Nigerian woman, Erinma Laurette Chamberlin and her baby, Benita, have been allegedly detained in an Indian hospital.
Times of India reports that Chamberlain, who gave birth September 2015 was confined to the 11th floor of Wockhardt hospital located on Mira road in India. Although the hospital claimed she has been discharged, she was unable to pay up her medical bills, hence, the alleged detention.
Erinma Laurette Chamberlin and baby
Since the 36-year old woman gave birth through Caesarean Section, she has since not stepped out of the hospital. Her husband, Chamberlin Chiemela Ezeama, who is presently in Nigeria, has filed a suit, claiming his wife and new baby (which is the couple’s 5th child), were illegally detained in room no 1124.
The hospital management however said that Chamberlain’s medical visa has expired and her bill keeps pilling up. Now, she is owing the hospital about Rs 8 lakh (she is said to be charged Rs 12,000 per day for the room alone), adding that she and her baby “were allowed to stay at the hospital on humanitarian grounds”, after her husband didn’t respond to calls and messages regarding the dues.
“Her husband has not bothered to take the family back home despite repeated requests, even when the woman was fit to be discharged 15 days after admission. Her bill is now more than Rs 8 lakh, largely because of the unnecessary stay due to his non-response regarding settling the bill or taking his family back,” a hospital official said in an email to the media.
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Explaining how she feels sad about the development, Mrs Chamberlain said:
“Back home, several women undergo a Caesarean Section end up dead. Friends suggested I travel to India as the country has fantastic medical facilities. I didn’t know that I would have the worst experience here. Around a month after the surgery, I asked the doctor whether I was fit for discharge, to which she said yes. I began to make plans for our return to Nigeria when the management told me I could not be discharged as I hadn’t cleared the dues. I told them that we had already paid $3,000 (around Rs 1.89 lakh), and promised to stay in the city till we paid our dues. But they did not discharge me and my baby and I have been living in this room, for which I am charged $180 a day,” she alleged.
She alleged getting threats from the hospital staffers. “They would warn me that I will end up in jail and now I will see the ‘other’ side of India. I am only allowed to take a stroll on the floor where my room is located. I am scared and worried, and my temperament is having a negative effect on my baby. Living in this room, I have lost track of time,” she added.
Erinma’s husband contacted advocate Utkarsh Srivastava of Adjuva Legal. He told this newspaper from Nigeria:
“I wrote to several government departments, including Sushma Swaraj’s office. I am ready to pay the dues but over a course of time during which my wife will stay in India. I am unable to visit India due to financial and immigration issues. But my wife and daughter are being wrongly detained in India. I have not yet held my daughter in my arms, I only get to see her on the phone.”
The hospital is said to have submitted complaints to the police, the foreigner regional registration offices, the Nigerian High Commission, and the Indian High Commission in Nigeria. A statement by the hospital said:
“The patient has been given the best of services. Nobody has barred the patient from leaving the hospital. The couple was unable to pay the entire amount due to constraints and a limit to the amount of money they can carry out of their country. The husband promised to send the money and said that the woman would stay in the hospital till the bills are settled. On numerous occasions, we had told her husband that her visa will expire, but he hasn’t taken any action. We have looked after the patient like a member of our family.”
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