The National Cardio-Thoracic Centre said on Monday that Frank Asubonteng, the 14-year-old heart patient, had died when he was brought to the hospital at 3am on Saturday morning.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Accra, the Centre denied media reports that Asubonteng died because he was refused medical attention due to the current doctors strike at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng Director of the Centre told the GNA that the boy's father, Nana Asubonteng, Dwantuahene of the Dormaa Traditional Area in the Brong Ahafo Region, reported to the nurse on duty that morning that he had brought a patient who needed medical attention.
According to Prof. Frimpong-Boateng, the nurse, Mr. Alex Abrefa, who is a Senior Nursing Officer, immediately prepared a bed and went for a wheel chair to carry the patient. He said he found to his surprise that the two people carrying the patient had deposited him on the floor. When he got closer, the nurse said, he found the boy already dead.
According to the nurse, because he was unqualified to declare the patient dead, he advised Nana Asubonteng to send the boy to the Emergency Centre, where he knew a medical officer would handle the issue professionally.
However, he said, Nana Asubongteng refused to take the advice and rushed to the Police and Military Hospitals, respectively where his son was pronounced dead which was collaborated by Mrs Rebecca Essilfie Matron at the Centre.
Prof. Frimpong-Boateng said he was saddened by the boy's death because he had to sacrifice personally and professionally to operate on him in 1996 despite the controversy that was created by his father Nana Asubonteng, who was then refusing that the boy should undergo the surgery.
"It is unfortunate that the parents of the boy have neglected him by refusing to follow up his treatment with the routine check-ups, a situation that must have caused his death," he said. The Asubonteng case became a national controversy when his father claimed at a press conference that the boy had been healed spiritually through the prayers of Rev. Owusu Tabiri, his brother.
Though part of the money needed for the operation had been raised through donations, Nana Asubonteng refused to approve of the money because of his claim and at one point threatened to sue the surgeon if he went ahead with the operation without his approval.
The surgery was carried out with money from the Heart Foundation after the intervention of the Commission of Human Rights and Administrative Justice when the boy's mother, Madam Addae lodged a complaint.
