22-year-old mother, Deborah Appiah popularly known to be Yaa Duah on Friday abandoned her day-old baby girl at the St. Francis Hospital at Assin Fosu in the Assin Fosu Municipality in the Central Region.

The mother of four is said to have delivered at the Assin Fosu Polyclinic but later got referred to the St. Francis Hospital's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) on account of Omphalocele after nurses detected her newborn baby had her umbilical mass covered with a peritoneal sac.

The mother upon realizing the condition of the baby, absconded and left the baby at the hospital.

Doctor Emmanuel Agbematu, facility doctor for the St. Francis Hospital explained to Sompa News reporter Eric Annan the baby will only need surgical intervention to survive since the overlying peritoneum is infected and discharging offensive fluids.

In charge of the St. Francis Hospital's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), Ms. Vivian Kodia revealed, a tip-off led to the arrest of the mother after four days at Assin Dompim following an official report made by the hospital to the police.

The mother has been offered bail upon the doctor's advice, considering the condition of her newborn baby coupled with her economic situation having been charged with the offense of abandoning the baby to the exposure of harm.

In an attempt to seek answers from the 22-year-old mother over her abandonment of the baby, disclosed to Sompa News to be an unemployed single mother of four whose mother died 10 years ago with no trace of her father's whereabouts but now lives with her aged grandfather.

She explained of having no intention to abandon her baby at the hospital but went in search of money for the child's surgery until her arrest. 

The nursing mother, therefore, appealed to all and sundry to support her save the child's life by raising money for her surgery.

Management of the St. Francis Hospital considering the deteriorating state of the baby's condition has arranged for a referral to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital at a cost of GH¢3,000.00 as the baby's situation keeps worsening over the family's financial constraints.

Source: Sompaonline.com/Eric Annan