Further to the previous press release about the girl who died, May Allah have mercy upon her, at King Faisal Hospital in Makkah, and seeking to clarify all relevant circumstances, in line with the transparency approach pursued by the Ministry of Health, and as a way to put forth all facts about this issue, and the outcomes which the investigating committee has come up with, Makkah Health Affairs General Directorate would like to make clear that:
Firstly: The deceased girl child was brought to the emergency department of King Faisal Hospital in Makkah on Ramadan 26th, 1436H, at 07:39 pm, by a private vehicle. And upon a preliminary examination, it turned out that the girl was dead almost half an hour before her arrival to the hospital. This was confirmed by her mother who said that she uttered her last breath half an hour earlier at home and before she was brought to the hospital. According to the examination, the child had birth defects, and there were no visible injuries, and the death was natural.
Secondly: The family of the deceased girl was notified of the importance of completing the regulatory procedures of submitting the examination form and a copy of the child ID, since she was in the first decade of her age, so that the hospital could complete the required procedures for referring her to the Makkah Maternity and Children Hospital. But as the girl family have not completed the legal procedures, the deceased child was enshrouded and transferred to post-mortem examination room adjacent to the emergency department, awaiting the return of her family.
Thirdly: The on-duty manager, while passing by the department on Friday, Shawal 1st, 1436H, smelled an odor emitting from the room where the body of the child was kept. The hospital management was informed immediately and the body was moved to the morgue in Al-Muaisem. The Director-General of Makkah Health Affairs, Dr. Mustafa Baljon, ordered the formation of an ad hoc committee, composed of the hospital management, emergency and crises departments, the forensic and quality and internal control departments and the legal affairs and technical follow-up, to investigate the incident and determine whoever accountable for the incident for questioning and hold accountable the negligent ones. All relevant bodies were informed thereof.
Fourthly: As per the recommendations mentioned in the minutes of the committee meeting, the committee decided to fire the following persons:
- Director of the Hospital.
- Director of Medical Services.
- Director of Support Services.
- Director of Emergency Department.
Fifthly: All health practitioners involved in the incident, those proven to be delinquent, were referred to the committee for determining violation of health professions system and its executive policy issued as per the Royal Decree No M/59 on 4/11/1426H, for the issuance of appropriate punitive actions provided for by the relevant regulation, in addition to imposing regulatory punishment against those who are found responsible, those who are not subject to the health professions practicing regulation.
Sixthly: All regulatory procedures were completed with the relevant authorities and the deceased body was buried.
The Makkah Health Affairs General Directorate would like to affirm that all procedures and measures have been taken to ensure that no such mistakes will happen in the future, confirming its keenness and commitment to implementing all laws, regulations and policies that achieve security and safety of the patient, and will not fall short of taking any action that preserves the right and personal dignity of the patient and upgrading services provided by employees of its health facilities.