Tragedy at a neonatal ward in Mexico: ‘There were weeks when all the moms left without their babies’

For seven months babies have been dying in the same neonatal ward in Guadalajara, in the Mexican state of Jalisco. An outbreak of two bacteria in that intensive care area has deprived at least 18 mothers of their newborns. Some of those women have never met; others recognize each other because the other’s child slept in the incubator next to theirs. Together they have formed a WhatsApp group where they call themselves “Bereaved Moms.” The first recorded case dates back to March. As of today, they say, there are still four infected babies at the Gynecology-Obstetrics Hospital of the Western National Medical Center of the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS).

To reach the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) on the second floor, parents pass through two glass doors under a sign announcing the neonatology area. After pressing a button there is an entrance filter with posters showing how to wash hands properly and put on a face mask and cap. You must enter without bracelets, watches, rings or accessories that could carry bacteria. The most fragile babies are admitted to a room of about 12 square meters, “by rough estimate,” describes Yuliana Guadalupe Vega Hernández, Dayana’s mother. There are around 10 incubators there, separated by only a few centimeters. In the next room, there are even more babies. The mothers say staff did not always follow the precautions they themselves were told to observe. “Staff come in with their cell phones and thermoses and don’t wash their hands between handling one child and another,” says Carolina, a pseudonym for a mother who requested anonymity.

The tragedy in the NICU began with Elías Miguel Escalante García, who was born on March 14 and died there 15 days later. The most recent victim was Hannah Guadalupe Ochoa González, born on April 9 and who died on September 28 at five months old. As a high-specialty hospital, most of those babies were vulnerable, either because they were born prematurely or were being treated for a condition. Some were born and died there, while others contracted the bacteria after undergoing a medical procedure there.

Valentina, the daughter of Evangelina Barajas, for example, was already living at home but visited the hospital for epileptic seizures. Once there, she contracted the bacteria after a catheterization procedure: “She had already recovered from the seizures and suddenly developed a fever. They told me she picked up the virus right there in the hospital.” “I came to them for help and they gave her back to me dead. I feel ravaged, I’m broken, shattered. She was my only daughter. Every day I need her, I need her chubby cheeks, her little smile, her scent,” she laments. Barajas meets with Fátima Pérez and Evelyn González outside the hospital. None of them has received psychological care or been contacted by the IMSS, they say. “We want those responsible to pay for what they did to us,” Pérez says.

About the bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae and the fungus Candida albicans that her son had before he died nine days ago, González, 21, only knows “that they do a lot of harm” to babies. Carolina describes the bacterium as “a bug” that causes infections and resists antibiotics. Rosa María Wong, a lecturer at UNAM’s School of Medicine, explains to this newspaper that these are microorganisms that live in hospitals and colonize the intestines and skin of patients and workers. Premature birth, prolonged hospitalization and invasive procedures such as the placement of catheters or probes can be risk factors for newborns. To prevent and control their spread, Wong says, strict hand washing by health personnel is necessary.

The nine mothers interviewed directly by this newspaper say they found it alarming to realize that babies were becoming infected and dying one after another. “There were weeks when all the moms left without their babies,” Carolina says. Although death certificates list various causes, in many cases the symptoms match. The skin turned yellow, they stopped urinating, the liver failed, the kidneys tightened, they developed ascites (abnormal build-up of fluid in the abdomen) and finally septic shock. The parents of Elián, José Nayib and Anthony Jassiel, were the first to notice the pattern and report it; they are pursuing a collective complaint with the Attorney General’s Office. Others are filing individually, and the rest do not want to press charges.

The deaths extend from March 29 with Elías to September 28, just nine days ago. The first case was Elías Miguel Escalante García, born March 14 and who died 15 days later. After that came the cases of Dayana, who was admitted May 28 and died July 4; Marcos Jassiel Baltasar Reynoso, born June 19 and who died September 22; Camila Sofía Bautista Flores, born July 10 and who died August 9; Hannah Valentina Reséndiz Barajas, who was admitted August 3 and died a month later; Matías Bautista Saldaña, born August 3 and who died September 7; and Miriam, whose death was reported on September 14.

As of this Wednesday, three other mothers remain with Carolina in the same ward. One of them, the mother of twins, says her daughters have contracted and recovered from the bacteria twice. On Tuesday her worry increased: “One is very yellow.” The two exchange information after the four o’clock visit. Carolina comforts her and announces good news. She eagerly awaits the coming Monday, the day her baby is due to be discharged and appears to have overcome the Candida infection. The twin brother did not make it. “We’re going home. With the oxygen tank and all, but we will never come back,” she says.

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