Mother, newborn death: Husband demands cancellation of Central Hospital, Dr Sangjukta's registration

Yakub Ali, husband of Mahbuba Rahman Akhi who died days after her newborn due to medical negligence, has lodged a complaint with the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council (BMDC), seeking a compensation of Tk2 crore.

In the written complaint submitted to the BMDC on Sunday (25 June), Yakub has also demanded cancelling registrations of the Central Hospital and Dr Sangjukta Saha, as well as establishing a separate monitoring cell in every hospital.

Akhi's husband alleged that the Central Hospital caused the deaths of his wife and newborn by withholding information and providing wrong treatment.

The complaint stated that Akhi decided to have her delivery under Dr Sangjukta Saha after watching a Facebook video about painless normal delivery. Several appointments were made with Dr Sangjukta during her pregnancy.

Akhi's husband said when she started experiencing labour pain at 9pm on 9 June, they first contacted Dr Sangjukta Saha's assistant Zamir, and informed him about the situation. Zamir along with another associate doctor of Sangjukta Saha confirmed her availability and registered an appointment.

Akhi's husband took her to Central Hospital at 12:25am that night. When they reached Dr Sangjukta Sahar's chamber, the staff informed them that the doctor was in the labour ward, so they proceeded there.

According to Yakub's complaint, an assistant doctor took Akhi inside to meet Dr Sangjukta Saha, instructing Yakub to wait outside. After some time, Yakub was asked to pay the admission fee downstairs. He went down and paid the fee in the name of Dr Sangjukta Saha. The doctor handed him the receipt and told him that if he wanted to talk to the doctor, he would have to wait as she was busy delivering another baby.

Without Yakub's consent, Dr Sangjukta Saha's team members Dr Muna and Dr Shahjadi made her wife do a 45-minute exercise. While attempting to deliver the child by making an incision, they accidentally cut other organs, including the urethra and anus, resulting in severe bleeding. They were unable to stop the bleeding and proceeded to perform a caesarean section without Yakub's permission, while Akhi was unconscious.

In his complaint, Yakub further stated that when he inquired about Dr Sagjukta Saha in the morning, other doctors informed him that she was not there. Dr Shahjadi admitted to carrying out the incision under Dr Sangjukta Saha's instructions and advised Yakub to take the patient to Dhaka Medical.

Subsequently, with the assistance of the police, Yakub Ali admitted his wife to the CCU of LabAid Hospital. Central Hospital later informed him that their child had died. Tragically, Akhi also passed away on 18 June.

Yakub Ali expressed in the complaint that their family had numerous plans for the future, besides shopping and other preparations to welcome their newborn child. But the incident at the Central Hospital marred the young couple's dreams, he said, adding that he is now at an utter loss of the will to carry on without his family.