Newborn dies, kin accuse health dept officials of negligence

A 108 AMBULANCE DRIVER LEFT THE MOTHER, INFANT ON THE ROAD OUTSIDE MUKERIAN HOSPITAL WHEN FAMILY EXPRESSED INABILITY TO PAY HIM MORE

HOSHIARPUR : The negligence of the health department and highhandedness of a ‘108’ ambulance driver claimed the life of a newborn baby on Saturday, the child’s brick kiln worker parents alleged.

When the baby girl, born at the Hajipur civil hospital on Friday, did not cry after her birth after which the staff asked her parents to take her to the Mukerian civil hospital as they did not have the required equipment to resuscitate the child.

Around 9pm, the infant’s parents — Seema Devi and Manoj Kumar —were sent to the Mukerian hospital in an ambulance from where they were referred to the Hoshiarpur civil hospital without any treatment.

The couple paid ₹300 for the ambulance whose driver left them a few metres from the hospital, when he asked for more money.

When no other vehicle agreed to give them a lift, Manoj Kumar, called up the kiln owner who arranged another ambulance to take them to Hoshiarpur where they reached around 4am.

The child died around midnight on Saturday.

The couple lamented that timely treatment could have saved their child’s life.

Mukerian senior medical officer (SMO) Dr Shaminder Singh said that the parents of the patient were in a hurry to go to Hoshiarpur.

“The staff had barely started formalities when the man said he would take away the child and her mother in the ambulance they had already hired,” he said, refuting charges of negligence.

Dr Rajesh Mehta, medical officer in community health centre Hajipur, said the new born was referred as the centre had neither a paediatrician nor a ventilator.

He said the ambulance driver concerned had claimed that he had dropped off the patient in Hoshiarpur civil hospital.