Mpilo Hospital admits 18-year-old baby swap error

Two Zimbabwean families are in shock after DNA tests revealed their daughters, now 18 years old, were switched at birth at Mpilo Central Hospital in Bulawayo on May 13, 2007. The devastating discovery has reignited concerns about negligence and failing systems at one of the country's largest referral hospitals.

The truth emerged when a Bulawayo man began to question why his youngest daughter bore no resemblance to her siblings. Acting on suspicion, he commissioned a private DNA test, which confirmed she was not his biological child. The revelation initially tore his marriage apart, with the man accusing his wife of infidelity - an allegation she vehemently denied.

A family source told ZimLive that the distraught mother revisited Mpilo Hospital to investigate and discovered that only two girls had been born that day. With limited information, she launched her own search and, in 2023, located the other mother through social media. The two women met, shared their stories, and conducted DNA tests that conclusively proved their babies had been swapped.

"The hospital admitted negligence, saying the babies' identification tags had probably fallen off and were replaced incorrectly," the source said. "They pleaded that back in 2007, Zimbabwe was in a deep economic crisis, staff shortages were severe, and hospital systems had collapsed."

Mpilo Hospital's chief medical officer, Dr. Narcisius Dzvanga, told ZimLive he needed more time to respond to detailed questions about the case. The families say they have received no psychological or practical support from the hospital despite the trauma of the discovery.

"The least they could have done was deploy psychologists to help," a source close to the families said. "Instead, they've been left to deal with the pain on their own."

Tragically, the father of the girl raised in Shurugwi died before learning the truth. The Bulawayo family has reportedly offered to support both girls financially, though the Shurugwi mother - who now lives in South Africa - is still weighing her options. Efforts are underway to help the two young women bond with both families, though cultural and linguistic differences between the Shona- and Ndebele-speaking households have complicated matters.

The families have since engaged lawyers and are considering suing Mpilo Hospital for gross negligence.

The scandal comes just months after a similar baby swap was confirmed at the United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) in January, where a Cowdray Park mother who delivered a boy by Caesarean section was mistakenly given a girl. DNA testing later proved the swap, and the Esigodini couple who had unknowingly taken the boy initially refused to cooperate until police intervened.

Legal experts note that such cases echo a landmark 2014 ruling by the North Gauteng High Court in South Africa, which decided that two children swapped at birth should remain with the families who had raised them - prioritising emotional bonds over biological connection.

The revelations come as Mpilo Hospital faces mounting scrutiny over a series of scandals that have shaken public confidence. Recent investigations have uncovered widespread fraud in nursing recruitment, including the admission of students with forged O' Level certificates. Several individuals - including Thelma Gurupira (23) of Mbare, Sandra Kudzaishe Ndege (25) of Murehwa, and Jonathan Mukwenha of Gokwe - have been arrested, while others remain under investigation.

In another case, Taurayi Prosper Vanhuvaone (29) posed as a doctor at the same institution for several months, prescribing dubious treatments and defrauding patients before being caught.

As the baby swap case unfolds, pressure is mounting on health authorities to strengthen accountability and restore trust in the country's public hospitals - institutions that, for many Zimbabweans, remain their only access to healthcare.