Health Ministry investigates deaths of mother and baby

A committee of the Health Ministry started investigations Monday to establish if medical error caused the recent death of a Saudi woman and her baby at the Maternity Hospital in Khamis Mushayt.
Nasser Shaflut’s wife, 32, and their newborn baby died at the hospital two hours after the mother was admitted for delivery, said Shaflut’s brother.
“Findings of the investigating committee will be announced and necessary steps taken without any delay. If any medical error occurred, the responsible doctors will be brought to justice,” said Dr. Waleed Al-Sanafi, director of Hospital Administration under the Health Directorate in Asir.
“The Asir Health Directorate has ordered a travel ban on all doctors and medical workers who attended the delivery of the woman until the completion of the investigations,” said Saeed Al-Naqeer, spokesman of the Health Directorate in Asir.
Shaflut believed that the circumstances that led to the death of his wife and child would be discovered only by an official inquiry because he suspected some medical error.
“He spoke to his wife after the delivery and then she was in good health. Half an hour later she called him asking for help as her health was deteriorating and urging his presence,” Shaflut’s brother said, adding that she and the baby died before his arrival at the hospital, a local Arabic daily reported.
He said he was authorized to follow up the case on behalf of his brother because Shaflut suffered a nervous breakdown following his wife’s death and left for another town because he could not remain in the house where he lived with late wife.
The brother said the director general of the Health Directorate in the Asir province took steps to safeguard the case record of the deaths to avoid any tampering with the evidences that might indicate a medical error, immediately after he demanded an inquiry into the matter.
The brother said a woman worker who washed the two bodies told him that she saw some bruises and mutilation on the mother’s body besides blood oozing from her mouth.
He added that he did not get any transparent answer from the doctor who attended the case about the cause of the death except that it was caused by hemorrhage in the lung.
He said officials had told him that Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah was monitoring the case.