A Detroit grandmother is left to raise 12 children after daughter dies during childbirth

(CNN) Patricia Pouncey feels numb whenever she thinks about the tragic death of her daughter Nikita Washington last December.

A black mother from Detroit, Washington died at Harper University Hospital the day after giving birth to her 12th child, a boy named Nathaniel, by caesarean section.

Pouncey, who is now raising Nathaniel and her daughter’s 11 other children, said the confusion over what led to her death made the pain of the loss even worse.

“I have a lot of questions right now,” Pouncey said. “I always ask myself, ‘What went wrong?'”

Pouncey says her daughter had to go to the hospital alone to give birth and stay home to care for her other grandchildren because her husband was incarcerated.

Pouncey now regrets not taking his daughter to the hospital.

Washington was being treated for high blood pressure in the hospital, she told family, and had a caesarean section on the night of December 22.

The next morning, the family learned that the baby was born healthy. But she died while doctors treated Washington for loose stitches and excessive bleeding, Pouncey said.

The Wayne County Clerk’s death certificate, reviewed by CNN, shows Washington, 35, died of “postpartum hemorrhage” and “complications from multiple caesarean sections.”

However, Pouncey wonders if the doctor did everything to save his daughter.

“I haven’t spoken to anyone at the hospital. I haven’t received anything. All I have is the death certificate,” Pouncey said.

A spokesman for the Detroit Medical Center, which operates Harper University Hospital, issued a statement to CNN saying it could not comment on Washington’s death.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families who have lost loved ones,” the statement said.

Black Maternity Health Week

According to the latest data from the National Center for Health Statistics, maternal mortality in the United States will rise significantly in 2021, with black women dying 2.6 times more often than white women.

As part of Black Maternal Health Week (April 11-17), events are being held across the country to raise awareness of this issue. This includes his five city tour sponsored by Irth, a social change app that provides reviews from black and brown women. A list of doctors and hospitals that provide antenatal, birth, postnatal and pediatric care. Also this week, Baby Dove launched a new Black Doula Directory, connecting a pregnant woman with her Black doula. Doulas are trained professionals who provide special support and advocacy to pregnant women.

Pouncey urges families of pregnant and birthing women to advocate for their loved ones, ask questions, and demand doctors and nurses to break down medical terminology.

“I worry about all mothers,” Pouncey says. “Never make the mistake I made. Let your child go alone (to the hospital). You need to pay more attention to what’s going on.”

Pouncey relied on her convictions to move forward and raise Washington’s children, ages 3 months to 19, she said. And thank you for the donations that helped her family buy a bigger home and a reliable car.

She wants her daughter to be remembered as a kind, giving person who enjoyed styling her hair, enjoying music, and being with her family.

“God got us,” Pouncey said.