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From powerhouse doctor to bedridden — listeriosis outbreak shatters a family’s future and a mother’s life

From powerhouse doctor to bedridden — listeriosis outbreak shatters a family’s future and a mother’s life
Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo's sister-in-law, Dr Elinecha Mosha-Sangweni, has been left bedridden and non-verbal after contracting listeriosis during the 2017/18 outbreak. (Photo: Thom Pierce)
Lerato Mutsila
By Lerato Mutsila
11 Sep 2024
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After unknowingly consuming contaminated cold meat from Tiger Brands, Dr Elinecha Mosha-Sangweni contracted listeria meningitis, which left her paralysed and bedridden, unable to walk, talk, or eat. Her once-promising future was destroyed by the severe neurological damage caused by the infection.

With a loving marriage, four children, and a budding career as a medical doctor, Elinecha Mosha-Sangweni, or Dr Ellie as she is more fondly called, lived a charmed life full of potential.

That all changed in 2017 when South Africa underwent the largest outbreak of listeriosis the world has seen. More than 200 people died and more than 1,000 people were infected.

The lives of many survivors of the deadly outbreak were irreversibly changed, They suffered long-lasting and debilitating health problems. Elinecha Sangweni among them.

After contracting listeria meningitis in the outbreak that has been irrefutably linked to Tiger Brands’ now-closed Enterprise Foods facility in Polokwane, Dr Ellie suffered severe neurological complications. She can no longer walk, talk or eat and is bedridden.

listeriosis toll bedridden Dr Elinecha Mosha-Sangweni with her family in Midrand, Johannesburg. Mosha-Sangweni has been left bedridden and non-verbal after contracting listeriosis during the 2017/18 outbreak. (Photo: Thom Pierce)



“Here is someone who had a future ahead of her. She had businesses gaining traction and she eagerly wanted to continue participating in her profession. She had a family that she wanted to care for, not just materially, but emotionally and psychologically. At the time, we had plans, but that all had to come to a halt as now the focus is looking after Elinecha,” her husband Dumisani Sangweni said, sitting at his wife’s bedside.

Life-changing diagnosis


Highly health-conscious by nature, Dumisani said that Dr Ellie was always particular about the food she consumed. However, while on a business trip in 2017, Dr Ellie ate what she believed was a Cobb salad. What she needed to know was that instead of using cooked bacon, the salad contained processed, cold meats.

It took less than a week for the listeria in Dr Ellie’s bloodstream to attack her body and cause irrevocable damage. 

Dumisani recounted how, on 28 June 2017, his sister told him that his wife was suffering from excruciating headaches and was being rushed to hospital. Dr Ellie was given medication and discharged, but her symptoms persisted.

“Throughout the night she couldn’t sleep, [the headaches] just got worse to the extent that it was just unbearable, and that’s when I had to take her into hospital... [She was in] excruciating pain. As I was driving her to the hospital, I remember just hitting a pothole would send her into a frenzy of pain,” Dumisani said.

At the hospital, tests revealed that she had listeria meningitis of the ST6 strain. What started as a bacterial infection in her stomach travelled into her bloodstream, found its way into her cerebral spinal fluid and settled into her brain, causing catastrophic neurological damage. The bacteria caused ischemic strokes, cutting off blood supply to the brain and depriving it of oxygen and nutrients.

Elinecha developed hydrocephalus, a build-up of fluid in the brain, causing severe swelling, which forced doctors to operate on her brain, inserting a ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt to drain the fluid, but the damage had already been done.

The complications left Dr Ellie paralysed and with permanent and severe neurological damage. She can no longer walk, talk or eat because she suffers from aspiration – sucking food into her airway. She is now fed via a feeding tube inserted into her stomach. She requires round-the-clock care. 

A family shattered


The family has not been the same since Elinecha’s condition deteriorated. Her youngest child, Sakhumzi, suffers the most emotional torment. Sakhumzi has been in therapy since Elinecha’s hospitalisation.

“The whole family was very affected. The kids were still young at the time and very attached to their mother; they took a lot, and we are worried about their mental state. She was a very active mother, but that was all taken away,” Dumisani said.

As a result of Elinecha contacting listeriosis and the round-the-clock care she requires, the family is burdened with astronomical medical bills. They also had to sell their house and move into a property more suitable for Elinecha’s needs.

A family united


Despite having to deal with the aftermath of the listeriosis outbreak for the past six years, the family has grown closer since Elinecha’s diagnosis.

They make a point of visiting Elinecha every Sunday and spend time with her. Although she may not be able to communicate, Dumisani says Elinecha is always mentally aware.

“Going through what she went through, the physical trauma to the brain affected a lot of faculties, but one thing is for sure: she has memories, and her situational awareness is still very much intact. She knows who is in the room. As my brother-in-law, sister, and mother came into the room today, she lit up. [Being around family] invigorates her and lifts her spirits,” Dumisani said.

listeriosis toll bedridden lindiwe Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo's sister-in-law, Dr Elinecha Mosha-Sangweni, has been left bedridden and non-verbal after contracting listeriosis during the 2017/18 outbreak. (Photo: Thom Pierce)



While her sister-in-law, Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo, sat next to her and spoke about their relationship, Elinecha strained to smile throughout the interaction.

“We have been very close. Ellie is my sister-in-love. Ellie was just always a loving mother and sister who found a lot of time to spend with the family and put a lot of value into the family. She used to always say, ‘Linds, we have to have Sunday lunch. It’s such an important thing,’ but we were always busy, and now we are here every Sunday.

Turning to Elinecha, Lindiwe chuckled and said, “Look, you’ve won on that one.”

“I am amazed by Eli’s strength and her resilience. It talks to who she is as a person. This could break many people, and many people would have given up. There is just an inner resilience and a sense of ‘I’m going to get through this fight’,” Sangweni-Siddo said. DM

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