Newspaper headlines today like “Baby’s blackened arm removed — Procedure on Yok Shan over in 10 minutes” (The Star), “Tangan bayi tersalah suntuk tertanggal sendiri” (Mingguan Malaysia), “ORDEAL — BABY YOK SHAN LOSES HER LEFT FOREARM” (New Sunday Times) and “Tangan bayi salah suntuk dipotong” (Berita Minggu) highlight another tragic case to remind Malaysians that despite all the glitter and extravangza of the 50th Merdeka Anniversary celebrations, public service standards and accountability have fallen to a new low in 50 years.
Health Minister, Datuk Seri Chua Soi Lek should present a Ministerial statement in Parliament tomorrow on the outrageous case of five-week-old baby Lai Yok Shan who lost her left forearm from below the elbow because of medical negligence at the Tengku Ampuan Rahiman Hospital in Klang.
Lai’s parents, her father Lai Kian Khee, 24 and mother Nur Tuemthong, were told on National Day eve that Yok Shan will undergo an operation expected to last from two to four hours on Sept 1 – a day after 50th Merdeka National Day – to amputate her left arm, but in actual fact, no amputation was needed as the blackened arm came off when the orthopaedic surgeon lifted and turned it.
This showed how little the panel of medical specialists knew about Yok Shan’s condition despite all the hullabaloo about its establishment to treat the baby girl!
Chua should honour his public promise that “there will be no cover up and all will be transparent” into the negligence resulting in the Yok Shan losing her left forearm.
This is why he should present a Ministerial statement in Parliament to outline not only the shocking medical and hospital negligence resulting in the Yok Shan tragedy, but what action he has taken as Health Minister to accept full responsibility for the Yok Shan outrage and ensure that there will not be another horrible case of medical and hospital negligence akin to the Yok Shan case in future.
Yok Shan was born two months premature on July 23 and kept in an incubator and on a ventilator. When her condition deteriorated, it was decided to give her strong antibiotics which could only be administered intravenously.
A trainee doctor who received instructions over the telephone from the specialist doctor on duty administered the injection. The trainee doctor inserted the needle into muscles and tissues instead of blood vessel in the arm. This caused the baby’s arm to be infected.
It is clear that there is a chain of irresponsibility and negligence resulting in Yok Shan having to lose her arm, involving the trainee doctor, the specialist doctor, the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital, the Ministry of Health and even the panel of medical specialists announced by Chua on August 9 to save Yok Shan’s left arm.
Apart from questions of culpability of the trainee doctor and the specialist doctor who had given instructions over the phone instead of attending to the case personally, why was there a six-day delay by the authorities in taking urgent remedial action — with Chua only responding and announcing a panel of specialists to take care of Yok Shan after the DAP Pasar Besar Branch chairman Peter Tan had highlighted the incident in the media!
Furthermore, why was the panel of specialists completely unaware of the condition of Yok Shan, expecting a two-to-four hour amputation operation when it just fell off when lifted and turned?
I will raise this medical and hospital negligence issue in Parliament if Chua is not prepared to present a ministerial statement on Yok Shan’s suffering and tragedy tomorrow.