The final moments of the late Dr Desree Moraa Obwogi paint a picture of a young lady who was battling stress and depression. On the day she died by suicide, Dr Moraa had informed her colleague who was also her host that she wanted to go to the rooftop because she wanted some alone-time. This had happened twice that evening.
One of the last person’s to see her was the caretaker of the apartment where Dr Moraa was being hosted by her colleague. The caretaker told a local media house that he had met with Dr Moraa as she walked to the house and greeted her.
“I saw her come in because I was going out to watch the football match between Manchester City and Arsenal. She said ‘Hi’ in a hurry and went to their ground floor corner house,” the caretaker told a local newspaper.
At around 8.30pm after the football match, the caretaker returned and decided to empty the garbage bins that were located at a common area on each floor in the apartment. At around 9pm, as he went up the stairs, the caretaker saw her body dangling by the window grills.
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“She was in black jeans and a cream hoodie. People in the apartment had not noticed. I immediately called the police,” the caretaker said.
At that time, her host was still in the house unaware that Dr Moraa had died by suicide. She was the last person that Dr Moraa had spoken to, the caretake said.
The caretaker said that the host told him that Dr Moraa had arrived home after a 36-hour shift. She had some ice cream. She said that she wanted to go to the roof-top to breathe. After about fifteen minutes, Dr Moraa returned to the house, left her phone and then told her roommate that she was going back to the rooftop as she needed to be alone. That was the last time that she was seen alive.
Local media further reported a fellow intern at the Gatundu Level 5 Hospital saying that Dr Moraa had reported being depressed after doing back-to-back shifts for 36 hours. The intern further said that the late doctor had an altercation with one of their supervisors who was described as harsh. “That’s where it all started,” the intern was quoted by a local newspaper.
Following her death, the Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacist and Dentists’ Union (KMPDU) regretted the difficult circumstances under which the late doctor was working.
“Dr Desree Moraa Obwogi was working under very difficult, dangerous, and indecent conditions that did not guarantee her safety and overall well-being,” said KMPDU Secretary General Dr Devji Atellah.
“Her death is a sad but glaring manifestation of our country’s broken healthcare system that feeds on the unpaid and underpaid labour of young doctors and continues to undermine their safety and basic human rights.” Dr Desree Moraa Obwogi had interned at the Gatundu Level 5 Hospital for three months.
