Possible Negligence Uncovered At Banglamung Hospital Relating To Still-birth

[Rimmer]

We now report on a possible case of negligence from Banglamung Hospital. Khun See-orn aged 34 was due to give birth on 10th February and after a number of checks with Doctors at the Hospital, the baby appeared to be in good health and the pregnancy was progressing with no apparent problems. In the early hours of Tuesday Morning, Khun See-orn was rushed to Hospital after her waters had broken. She was about to give birth and was taken to the Maternity Unit, accompanied by her Husband Khun Sutin aged 34. At the time, only 5 nurses were on duty with no Doctor available to assist with the premature birth. The Nurses told the woman to push, but after one hour the baby had still not been delivered. The Medical Staff realized that the Umbilical Cord was wrapped around the neck of the baby and it was now in serious distress. Moments later another expectant mother arrived at the unit and 4 of the nurses left to attend to her, leaving a trainee nurse in charge of Khun See-orn . One further hour passed and the babies head began to appear meaning that the birth was imminent. At this point, the trainee nurse summoned assistance from the other nurses who returned and delivered the baby who was still born. The parents were understandably shocked and were puzzled as to why no doctors were informed of the problem during the birth. Administrative staff soon arrived and informed Khun See-orn that her medical insurance did not cover the birth as it was her third child but because of the death of her child, they would not charge her and would also cover expenses for the funeral of the still born baby girl. Khun See-orn found this strange and suggested the Hospital may have realized they had made a mistake and decided to waive any charges and pay for the funeral. Later on Tuesday, the father of the child, reported the incident at Banglamung Police Station and on Wednesday Morning a meeting was arranged at the Hospital. In attendance was the parents of the child and Dr. Wichai, the Deputy Managing Director of the Public Health Department of Chonburi Province. Dr. Prasit, the Director of Banglamung Hospital was also in attendance along with the 5 nurses involved in the birth. Dr. Wichai claimed that a break-down in communication between the Mother and the nurses may have occurred but also admitted the standard of care was not in accordance with Professional Medical Standards which is a set of regulations the Hospital must adhere to. The case will now be referred to the Provincial Health Authority and a post mortem examination of the child will take place. As soon as the investigation is complete and should it be determined that the Hospital is at fault, the family will be instructed by a team of legal advisers of how to proceed.

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2010-01-27