05/30/2026
THE BABY HAND IS NOW CUT OFF.
A mother took her sick 3 month-old baby to James Davis Hospital. She wanted doctors to help him get well.
The doctors gave the baby an injection. Or put a needle in his hand for medicine. This is normal.
But then something bad happened.
Soon after, the baby’s hand and arm started to change color. Then it turned black.
Doctors call this dead tissue. It means blood stopped going to the hand, so the hand died.
The James Davis hospital could not fix it. The problem was too big. So they sent the mother and baby to JFK Hospital in Monrovia.
At JFK, the doctors looked at the baby. They said:
The hand is already dead. If we don’t cut it off, the poison will spread and kill the baby. Cutting the hand off is the only way to save his life.
So the doctors cut off the baby’s hand.
The baby is only 3 months old.
Why did this happen?
Sometimes, injections can go wrong. This is called Nicolau syndrome. It is rare. But in Liberia, this kind of problem happens too much.
Other families have had the same problem. People get angry. They ask for the government to check the hospitals. But after some time, the same thing happens to another child.
Our health system is weak.
Here is how it failed this baby.
1. First, James Davis hospital gave an injection that killed the baby’s hand. Maybe the nurse was not trained well. Maybe the medicine was bad. Maybe they hit the wrong place. We don’t know. Nobody tells us.
2. Second, JFK Hospital had to cut off the hand to save the baby. JFK saved his life. But they should not have to do this. The hand should not have died in the first place.
Now this baby will grow up with only one hand. In Liberia, it is hard to get a fake hand. People may laugh at him. Life will be hard for him.
He is only 3 months old. He has not even learned to sit. But already he lost his hand.
This is not bad luck. This is a bad system.
To the Ministry of Health and government: How many more babies must lose their hands before you fix this?
To all mothers and fathers: We need hospitals that help, not hospitals that harm.
To this little baby: We are sorry. You are 3 months old. You deserved to be safe.
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