A Kenyan mother whose child allegedly lost their sight following a medication error at a pharmacy in Eldoret has expressed outrage after the facility issued her with a demand letter ordering her to stop making statements that could harm its corporate image.
In a viral video seen by TNX Africa, the distressed woman is seen standing outside the pharmacy holding the letter as she addresses a small crowd that had gathered around her. She revealed that while her child remains hospitalised and undergoing treatment, the pharmacy continues to operate normally.
“Unaniuliza na mtoto macho haioni. Wao wako kazi, shughuli yao inaendelea. Mimi niko hospitali,” she said emotionally.
When one of the onlookers asked about the contents of the letter she was holding, the woman explained that the facility’s lawyers had given her 72 hours to issue an apology.
“Hii barua wametumia lawyer wao wakisema eti nafaa kuapologize in 72 hours,” she said, sparking murmurs from the crowd.
One man in the background questioned why she should apologise when her child was the one affected by the alleged error.
“Kuapologize ya nini? Wamekuja hospitali?” he asked.
Another person asked whether officials from the pharmacy had visited the child in hospital. The mother responded briefly: “Hapana. Hawajakuja.”
The confrontation follows the circulation of an earlier viral video showing the mother confronting a pharmacist over allegedly dispensing the wrong medication for her child.
In the clip, the clinician is accused of mistakenly giving skin medication instead of prescribed eye drops, an error that reportedly worsened the child’s condition.
The mother claims she discovered the mistake after days of ineffective treatment and increasing inflammation, when she realised the child had been given skin cream rather than eye medication.
During the recorded confrontation, the pharmacist is heard acknowledging the error, attributing it to a mix-up between skin and eye prescriptions.
The incident has since drawn the attention of the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya (PSK), which responded to the earlier viral video by stating that the individual captured in the footage is neither a licensed pharmacist nor a registered member of the society.
PSK has called on the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) to investigate the matter and determine whether the outlet is operating in compliance with licensing requirements.
The society also urged the regulator to strengthen enforcement of patient safety standards across pharmacy premises.
“This matter should be approached as a patient safety issue. It presents an opportunity to strengthen systems, improve oversight and enhance public trust in pharmaceutical care,” said PSK president Dr Wairimu Mbogo.
The case has sparked heated reactions on social media, with many Kenyans calling for accountability.
One user, Lévi, wrote on X: “The child should be with an ophthalmologist right now to try and salvage the situation, then the mother should go to court.”
Another user, Jazzy Matharu, added: “This lady should get justice.”
