Ganderbal, April 24: A newborn baby boy died at District Hospital Ganderbal under alleged circumstances of medical negligence, sparking outrage among locals and leaving a grieving family demanding justice and accountability.
The infant, born after four daughters in the family from Gotli Bagh Ganderbal, was delivered dead following what relatives describe as a delayed and mishandled medical response. The expectant mother had reportedly been admitted to the hospital for two days before the incident.
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According to the family, they repeatedly urged doctors to intervene, claiming the baby had stopped moving and complications were evident. However, they allege that their concerns were dismissed.
“We kept pleading with them since 4 o’clock to treat her or perform a surgery, do anything, but save the baby. They kept telling us nothing would happen and that everything was fine. They said they would do the surgery by evening or morning, but they did nothing,” a family member said.
The family further stated that despite arranging medicines on their own and continuously expressing concern over the baby’s condition, they were allegedly told that all reports were normal. “We have four daughters, and we begged them to save this child. For two days, we were saying the baby was not moving, but they said we were lying. Can a mother ever lie about her child?” they said.
A close relative, Umar Islam, who claimed to have been present at the hospital, recounted a sequence of events that has raised serious questions. “She is my maternal aunt and was in her ninth month. Earlier, they had given a delivery date of the 20th, but it passed and was delayed by three more days. We told them if they couldn’t handle the case, they should refer us to SKIMS Soura or another hospital, but they insisted everything was normal.”
He alleged that the situation took a sudden turn within minutes. “Just 15 minutes before, they told us everything was okay. Then, after another check, a doctor from the next shift said it was an emergency and immediate surgery was needed. Within those same 15 minutes, they gave two injections and declared it an emergency. When the operation was performed, the baby was already dead. We don’t understand what happened in those 15 minutes.”
The family also accused hospital staff of insensitivity following the tragedy. “We called the ward in charge, but she spoke to us in a very insensitive manner. When the hospital in charge contacted her, she reportedly said we had ‘gone mad’ and told them to ‘leave them.’ There was no regret. Even if no mistake had been made, they should have shown some humanity,” the relative added.
Responding to the incident, Dr Farhat Shafiq, Medical Superintendent of the hospital, termed it “unfortunate” and said an internal audit has been initiated. “As per standard protocol, we have constituted an internal audit committee. The committee will submit its report within a day or two, and further action will be taken based on its findings,” she said.
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The incident has triggered anger among residents in the area, with many calling for a transparent and time-bound investigation into the circumstances that led to the newborn’s death. (ANH)
