Achimota School was found liable for negligence in the tragic death of 15-year-old student Kervin Kofi Moses, who passed away in December 2016. The court’s ruling, nearly eight years after the incident, held the school, its housemaster, and the Attorney General responsible for failing to provide adequate medical care.
According to court documents, Kervin fell ill on November 28, 2016, and visited the student clinic complaining of symptoms consistent with malaria. Despite this, he was only given ibuprofen and assured it was not malaria. Concerned by the diagnosis, Kervin contacted his mother to inform her of his condition.
During the trial, evidence revealed that the housemaster of Fraser House, where Kervin was staying, disregarded calls from Kervin’s mother requesting to take her son to the hospital. Kervin’s mother testified, “I had so much concern for Kervin, so I quickly placed a call to the housemaster and requested permission to take Kervin to the hospital myself but he declined.”
The court determined that Achimota School had a duty of care towards Kervin while he was under their custody. Despite the school’s claim that Kervin was instructed to return to the clinic after two days, the judge found that it was the housemaster’s responsibility to ensure Kervin received timely medical attention.
Further evidence showed that between November 28 and December 1, Kervin’s mother repeatedly tried to reach the housemaster for updates on her son’s health and offered to take him to the hospital. Many of these messages went unanswered.
Ultimately, Kervin was only rushed to Achimota Hospital on December 2 and later transferred to 37 Military Hospital, where he sadly passed away on December 4, 2016. The judge concluded that the school had failed in its duty to ensure Kervin received prompt medical care.
As a result of the negligence found, Achimota School, the housemaster, and the Attorney General have been ordered to pay GHS 400,000 in general damages and GHS 200,000 in damages for causing Kervin’s death due to negligence.
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