Shawdesh Desk:

The Directorate General of Health Services suspended the Central Hospital’s all operation theatre activities on Friday as its Intensive Care Unit and emergency services were found to be dissatisfactory.

The DGHS issued several directives after inspecting the hospital for the second time on Friday over allegations of the death of a newborn due to doctors’ negligence, DGHS director (hospitals and clinics) Sheikh Daud Adnan told New Age.

In an official order, the DGHS also asked the hospital authorities to bear all further treatment expenses for the victim and refund the money already paid to the hospital.

As per the directions made in the order, physician Sangjukta Saha cannot provide any specialised services without the DGHS’s written approval, legal procedure has to be followed if the victim’s family seeks compensation, Central Hospital authorities have to bear the expenses of the ongoing case against the arrested physicians, documents of all physicians involved in the treatment and documents related to the treatment will be sent to Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council and decisions regarding them will be taken as per BMDC rules, documents of the allegations will be sent to Health Services Division and further steps will be taken as per the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s decision.

Meanwhile, Mahbuba Rahman Akhi, who lost her newborn baby because of the alleged negligence and wrong treatment at Central Hospital, has been lying unconscious at the Coronary Care Unit of the capital’s Labaid Specialised Hospital with labour complications since June 10.

Her condition deteriorated after giving birth to the child at the Central Hospital on Green Road, allegedly due to doctors’ negligence, and she was shifted to the Labaid Specialised Hospital on the same day.

Doctors at the Labaid Hospital informed Akhi’s family that the chance of her survival was almost zero, according to Md Shamim, a paternal cousin of Akhi.

‘The treatment will continue since she is still alive. But doctors said that only a miracle can save her now,’ he said.

Central Hospital’s physicians Shahjadi and Muna, who were arrested on Wednesday night in a case filed over the newborn’s death, were sent to jail on Thursday after they gave confessional statements before the court.

Nurjahan Akter Baby, the mother of Akhi, raised her single-handedly after her husband

was killed in a road accident around 25 years ago while he was on duty as a Tejgaon police station sub-inspector.

‘She [Nurjahan] is in shock and becomes sick after this incident,’ said Shamim, adding that Akhi is her only child.

Akhi’s husband, Yakub Ali, filed a case with the Dhanmondi police station against five to six people on Wednesday night, alleging that his newborn son died while his wife was fighting for her life because of negligence and wrong treatment at the hospital.

According to the case statement, Akhi, who was expecting her first child, had been under the treatment of Sangjukta Saha at Central Hospital for the past three months.

Akhi was admitted to the hospital at 12:50pm on June 10 with labour pains. Though physician Saha was not present at the hospital at the time, the hospital authorities allegedly bluffed the patient’s family, saying she was in the hospital and Akhi could be admitted for normal delivery under Sangjukta Saha.