Minutes after a press conference during which the
anguished parents of G Tinasha accused a private hospital in Petaling
Jaya of negligence, the Form Two student passed away.
Tinasha, 14, who was suffering from fever, was taken to Assunta Hospital on Sunday night by her mother, I Uthayabavani.
"She was admitted at the emergency ward around 8.30pm. Around midnight, my daughter complained of headaches and felt nauseous.
"A nurse then administered a medication, on the instruction of a medical officer present," Uthayabavani (right) recalled, in between sobs.
The 46-year-old housewife believes her daughter could have been given the wrong medication.
Around 5am, Tinasha suffered a cardiac arrest and her oxygen levels dropped drastically, forcing the medical staff to perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and she was put on life support.
Tinasha's uncle, I Ramesh (left),
who was also present at the press conference, described his niece as an
active teenager, who participated in various NGO activities.
"Only last week, she was practising for a school concert.
"She wore a mock crown on her head, and was running around the house and showing it to everyone," he said, unable to hold back his tears.
Uthayabavani and her husband, B Ganesan Rao, a taxi driver, have also filed a police report against the hospital.
The uncle also said the medical officer in charge of Tinasha was not at all bothered about her condition.
"We told the medical officer that she seemed to be motionless and her pupils were not moving.
"The medical officer replied that it was a side effect of the medicine and there was nothing to be worried about," Ramesh said.
Uthayabavani, who was present at her daughter's bedside the whole time, said the medical officer did not even check her at all.
"The medical officer stood from afar and assessed her. He said that he assumed that she looked fine from her breathing," she said.
'Physician-in-charge not aware of happenings'
Ironically, Ramesh said the physician who was in charge of Tinasha was not aware at all of the happenings until she was admitted into the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after her resuscitation.
"The
physician specialist in charge of Tinasha was not aware of what was
happening. No one told her anything, even the medicine administered was
not approved by the specialist," he said.
The grief-stricken parents said they had a couple of meetings with the hospital administration, including its chief executive, but all to no avail.
Ramesh said the hospital even advised that not much could be done about Tinasha's condition and requested them to take her off life support.
"They told us that we were prolonging the agony of the child if we wanted her on the machine. They offered to provide an ambulance for us to take Tinasha home and let her pass away in a natural state," he agonisingly added.
Bukit Gasing assemblyperson Rajiv Rishyakaran (left),
who organised the press conference. said what happened was indeed
tragic and the hospital's standard operating procedure (SOP) was
doubtful.
"This is a very tragic incident that should not happen to anyone. We still have not got any satisfactory answer from the hospital’s side.
"The SOP of the hospital is questionable. The hospital should not cover-up, it should share everything with the family," he told reporters.
Assunta Hospital has denied any negligence on the part of its medical staff and claimed that procedure was followed.
Hospital: No negligence in teen's death
KAMLES KUMAR is a trainee reporter at Malaysiakini.
Tinasha, 14, who was suffering from fever, was taken to Assunta Hospital on Sunday night by her mother, I Uthayabavani.
"She was admitted at the emergency ward around 8.30pm. Around midnight, my daughter complained of headaches and felt nauseous."A nurse then administered a medication, on the instruction of a medical officer present," Uthayabavani (right) recalled, in between sobs.
The 46-year-old housewife believes her daughter could have been given the wrong medication.
Around 5am, Tinasha suffered a cardiac arrest and her oxygen levels dropped drastically, forcing the medical staff to perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and she was put on life support.
Tinasha's uncle, I Ramesh (left),
who was also present at the press conference, described his niece as an
active teenager, who participated in various NGO activities."Only last week, she was practising for a school concert.
"She wore a mock crown on her head, and was running around the house and showing it to everyone," he said, unable to hold back his tears.
Uthayabavani and her husband, B Ganesan Rao, a taxi driver, have also filed a police report against the hospital.
The uncle also said the medical officer in charge of Tinasha was not at all bothered about her condition.
"We told the medical officer that she seemed to be motionless and her pupils were not moving.
"The medical officer replied that it was a side effect of the medicine and there was nothing to be worried about," Ramesh said.
Uthayabavani, who was present at her daughter's bedside the whole time, said the medical officer did not even check her at all.
"The medical officer stood from afar and assessed her. He said that he assumed that she looked fine from her breathing," she said.
'Physician-in-charge not aware of happenings'
Ironically, Ramesh said the physician who was in charge of Tinasha was not aware at all of the happenings until she was admitted into the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after her resuscitation.
"The
physician specialist in charge of Tinasha was not aware of what was
happening. No one told her anything, even the medicine administered was
not approved by the specialist," he said.The grief-stricken parents said they had a couple of meetings with the hospital administration, including its chief executive, but all to no avail.
Ramesh said the hospital even advised that not much could be done about Tinasha's condition and requested them to take her off life support.
"They told us that we were prolonging the agony of the child if we wanted her on the machine. They offered to provide an ambulance for us to take Tinasha home and let her pass away in a natural state," he agonisingly added.
Bukit Gasing assemblyperson Rajiv Rishyakaran (left),
who organised the press conference. said what happened was indeed
tragic and the hospital's standard operating procedure (SOP) was
doubtful."This is a very tragic incident that should not happen to anyone. We still have not got any satisfactory answer from the hospital’s side.
"The SOP of the hospital is questionable. The hospital should not cover-up, it should share everything with the family," he told reporters.
Assunta Hospital has denied any negligence on the part of its medical staff and claimed that procedure was followed.
Hospital: No negligence in teen's death
KAMLES KUMAR is a trainee reporter at Malaysiakini.
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