Egyptian woman gives birth on hospital doorstep after being refused treatment

A video showing a woman giving birth on the doorstep on an Egyptian hospital has gone viral on Facebook and Twitter leading to the suspension of the hospital’s director.

The three minute video shows a veiled woman covered in a blanket as she gives birth outside the Kafr El-Dawar General Hospital surrounded by a group of women seeking to help her. A number of nurses are then seen trying to help the lady deliver.

Once the baby is born, the nurses carry the new mother onto a stretcher and take her into the hospital. The woman’s husband recorded the incident, believed to have taken place last week, in order to submit a complaint to the hospital after they refused to admit her for delivery unless she agreed to a caesarean section.

During the clip, someone, thought to be the lady’s husband, is heard shouting: “Look at the [human] rights. Have a look at the human rights. Here she has had a natural birth. Here she is. The doctor said she had to deliver through a caesarean section. Who is willing to go to court and be a witness with me?”

The video led to the Minister of Health Adel El-Adawy suspending the hospital’s director and the doctors at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology referring them to the administrative prosecution for investigation. The health ministry also commissioned a committee to investigate the incident.