Family holds protest over 2-yr-old’s death in hospital

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, June 8

The family members and relatives of a two-year-old child, who died during treatment at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital here, on Thursday staged a protest by blocking the Majitha road outside the hospital. They accused hospital staff of negligence and demanded action against them.

The family members said Dakashpreet was admitted to hospital a few days ago as he suffered from some infection. Balwinder, father of the victim, said, “A staff nurse at the hospital had injected a wrong message which led to his death.”

He claimed that the child was doing well before he was given the injection. The victim’s mother Radha demanded that a case should be registered against the staff nurse who had administered the injection to the child. She said the child was hale and hearty, but as soon as he was given the injection he started feeling uneasy.

The family members raised slogans against the hospital and refused to vacate the road till the action was taken against the ‘accused’ employees. However, after assurances from the local police and the hospital management, they were pacified and lifted the dharna.

Hospital officials said the child was admitted to the hospital on June 3 as he suffered from some bone infection. They said an adverse reaction to the child was reported and the matter was being investigated.

The officials stated that a committee of senior doctors had been constituted to investigate the matter which would submit its report. They said the postmortem was conducted to ascertain the cause of the death.

An official said, “The injection which the family is showing to the media is used in operation theatres and it is not even available in the wards. Even the file of the patient does not have a mention of the said injection.” The official stated that the fact-finding committee constituted by the hospital would give its report after which further action would be taken.