Health | Preliminary report finds doctor ‘negligent’ over baby’s death

A public hospital doctor who treated a five-month-old boy was found negligent over his death, a preliminary report shows. According to a statement issued by the government, the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Alexis Tam, revealed that disciplinary action will be taken against the doctor.
According to the report, the baby’s death was not related to medication administered after he sought medical treatment.
The baby died on February 19 after being allegedly prescribed with the antiemetic Domperidona, and the anti-allergy medicine Dimetindeno.
He was brought to the hospital on the morning of February 19 as he was regurgitating milk. After returning home and taking the medication, his condition failed to improve and his lips turned purple around two hours later. The baby was sent back to Conde São Januario hospital, where another doctor diagnosed him with sepsis. The baby then went into shock and died that evening.
The parents have cast suspicion over the doctor, whom they believe might have misunderstood the infant’s condition. The baby’s parents later pressed charges against the hospital for malpractice. Meanwhile the Judiciary Police (PJ) has launched an investigation into the boy’s death.
Mr Tam revealed on Friday that the Health Bureau had already submitted its internal report on the baby’s death. The report revealed that a pediatrician on call that day “was not in the emergency room for over an hour” while the baby was waiting for treatment.
The report indicates that the baby’s death was related “to the fact that the doctor failed to fulfil his duties.”
The secretary said he agreed with the launch of disciplinary action against the doctor, and has already informed the baby’s parents.
Regarding the baby’s cause of death, Mr Tam said that the pathology report and the autopsy results will only be available within three months. The Secretary added that there is no more room for mistakes in the future.
In addition to an investigation launched by police authorities, the Health Bureau said it had launched an internal investigation into the baby’s death as well, and therefore could not provide further information on the case.
The baby’s father told a press conference early this month that, “We arrived at the hospital at around 2:30 p.m., but it took two hours for the specialist doctor on duty to come for my son’s treatment.” He added that the pediatrician had to be called back to work. CP