A family of Chauncey is wondering what became of a premature baby they took to the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) earlier this week.

The baby’s father, Egan McKie, visited SEARCHLIGHT on Wednesday, accompanied by his mother, Violeta McKie.

Violeta explained that before 6 a.m.{{more}} on Tuesday, she was summoned by her son’s girlfriend, Shannel Baker, to the bathroom.

According to Violeta, when she peeped into the toilet, she became frightened when she saw a baby there.

“When I go in the bathroom, she ease back and show me the baby in the toilet. So, I ask she what happened. She told me she felt like she wanted to pee, so she go over the toilet and pee and the baby slip out in the toilet,” she said.

As she recounted the incident, the Chauncey resident said that she called 911 and explained where the baby was and that she was uncertain whether Baker, who was about five months pregnant, had miscarried or given birth to the baby boy.

“So, I call them to ask them if I could take the baby out of the toilet. They told me hold on, they coming and up to this time, I ain’t see no ambulance, no doctor, nobody come. She sister called a nurse and the nurse told her to take the baby out of the toilet and see if she could clamp the cord or something. But she did not do it. I took the baby with the birth (afterbirth) and wrapped it up in the blanket so it could get warm. The baby was perfect, strong; it looking good and it breathing and everything. After I see the ambulance didn’t come, I told my husband to come and drop them by the hospital with the baby and they go,” Violeta said.

Egan said upon arrival at the hospital, the nurses began to question his girlfriend, but did not attend to the baby.

He said that he kept saying that his child was moving, but the staff did not attend to the infant.

“After a while, we there, you could say about minutes to 8, a doctor came. That was so long. I didn’t see any sign of movement in the child again,” he said.

“The doctor was talking to my girlfriend first and then he checked the child and put his hand and foot good and say that it looked like a perfect baby and what’s not. After he left, one of the nurses came to put the baby in one of the cribs. Then after she went out, another one came in and put it in a pan; it look like a potty. That’s what it looked like to me,” Egan said.

The disturbed father revealed that Baker remained at the hospital that night, when she messaged him to say that she overheard nurses saying that the baby’s stomach was still moving. He thought that this meant his first son was still alive.

“They didn’t give us the baby; they didn’t tell us that the baby is dead. We assume,” Egan told SEARCHLIGHT, indicating that his girlfriend has since been discharged from the hospital.

It is Violeta’s view that if her grandchild was examined immediately upon arrival at the MCMH, his life could have been saved.

“I don’t know who to speak to. I don’t know what to do,” the grandmother said, while revealing that she hasn’t eaten anything since she saw the baby in the toilet on Tuesday.

SEARCHLIGHT spoke with hospital administrator Grace Walters, who indicated that she was unaware of the incident. She, however, urged the parents of the baby to return to the hospital to lodge a formal complaint, so that she could investigate their concerns and address the situation.

“I honestly have not heard of such an instance and no one came to me to lodge a complaint or to voice any concern, so I cannot say anything about that situation. It wasn’t reported to us,” Walters said.

“But I can say that it is highly unlikely that somebody would come to us from the districts and we do not do anything to the person. I also can say that when two patients are involved in terms of mommy and baby, that particular scenario is also highly unlikely. I’m not saying that it cannot happen at all, but I’m saying that it is highly unlikely that something like that has happened.”(BK)