Families blame hospitals for 2 more deaths

Two more patients died in separate hospitals in Chittagong city after alleged negligence in treatment on Tuesday.

The allegations come two days after similar allegations were raised following the death of three-year-old Raifa in a hospital in the port city. 

On Tuesday, Lokman Chowdhury, 75, of Changaon area died at AFC Fortis Hospital and Lovely Akter, 24 of Hathazari upazila died at Chittagong Medical College Hospital.

Lokman's son Farhad Uddin Chowdhury Jewel told The Daily Star that his father, who was suffering breathing difficulties, died on Tuesday night minutes after his oxygen mask was taken off.

“My father, who had respiratory problems, was admitted to AFC Fortis on June 22,” said Jewel, adding that his father was being treated at the Cardiac Care Unit (CCU).

“He was given an oxygen mask. He could not stay more than 10 seconds without the mask. On Tuesday evening, the hospital authorities called in Shimul Kumar Bhowmick, a consultant of respiratory medicine.”

“When the consultant arrived I entered the CCU along with the consultant. All of a sudden, he asked the duty doctor to remove the oxygen mask.

“My father was feeling discomfort.... he kept asking for the mask but the consultant said he was observing. I noticed the oxygen level falling in the monitor.

“I did not understand what was going to happen.... I just saw my father gasping for air and requesting the doctors to put the oxygen mask back on.... The duty doctors also requested the consultant to put the mask back on, but the consultant said he wanted to observe some more.

“At one stage, I saw the monitor showing zero oxygen level and then the consultant asked the duty doctors to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation and started to leave.”

The grieving son added that he then realised that his father was no more and told his family members about it.

The family members then forced the consultant back into the CCU and didn't allow him to leave for a while.

“The consultant left the hospital with police protection soon afterwards. The hospital authorities declared my father dead after the consultant left.

“My father died before my eyes due to sheer negligence of the doctor.... Had the doctor not removed the oxygen mask, my father would have lived.”

Contacted, Binod Singh, director of the hospital, refused to comment on the matter.

Shimul could not be contacted for his comment.

Mohiuddin Mahmud, officer-in-charge of Panchlaish Police Station, said a team of police went to the hospital to keep the situation under control. He said no one lodged a formal complaint with the police station.

In the other incident on Tuesday, Lovely Akter died during a C-section surgery at CMCH, her family members said, adding that there was negligence in her treatment.

According to the family members, doctors asked them to collect blood before a C-section surgery.

“Her husband Abul Hossain collected the blood, but the doctors didn't operate on time and left her in the bed,” said Jahangir Talukder, uncle of the husband.

He added that the woman was admitted to CMCH around 12.30am on Tuesday.

“Lovely was suffering in pain all night. In the morning, doctors asked Hossain to collect more blood for the C-section.

“Around around 8.30am, nearly half-an-hour after the patient was taken inside the operation theatre, the doctor said she was dead.”

Lovely's family members lodged a written complaint with the director of CMCH Brig Gen Jalal Uddin.

Contacted, the director said, “I asked the deputy director to probe into the incident.”

Akter Hossain, deputy director of CMCH, said the patient gave birth to two children through C-section earlier and it was supposed to be her third child.

“Naturally, she was at high risk.... Moreover, she tried to abort the baby through a local quack, making herself more vulnerable.”

Asked why the woman was allegedly left in bed all night, he said patients in a vulnerable condition had to be treated in bed to make them fit for surgeries.

“We are looking into the matter keeping all possibilities into consideration,” he said.

Jahangir, however, said Lovely's earlier babies were delivered without any C-section surgeries.