South Korean baby dies after parents refuse blood transfusion

South Korean baby dies after parents refuse blood transfusion

2010-12-13 10:46:44 GMT+7 (ICT)

SEOUL (BNO NEWS) -- A South Korean baby recently died after her parents had refused doctors to perform a blood transfusion because of their faith, local media reported on Monday.

The South Korean Yonhap news agency reported that the baby girl, identified by her surname Lee, was born in August at a hospital in Seoul where she was diagnosed with congenital heart disease. Doctors concluded she required surgery, but her parents refused to give permission because their faith does not allow blood transfusions.

Yonhap said that hospital officials, ethnic teams and lawyers successfully won a court order which allowed the doctors to override the parents' objections and perform the surgery.

But the parents had quickly left the hospital for another hospital, where they claimed that doctors performed a 'similar' kind of surgery without a blood transfusion. The girl died several days later.

"Even if I go back to that time again, I would insist on surgery without a blood transfusion," the mother said, according to Yonhap.

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