Clash over negligence claim as newborn dies at Barishal hospital; body, 2 relatives released 7 hours after mother begs

A woman in Barishal allegedly had to plead with doctors for the release of her newborn's body and two detained relatives after tensions erupted over accusations of medical negligence at Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital.

The back-and-forth began around 6:30pm yesterday (19 May) and continued until nearly 1:30am at the hospital.

Barishal Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Alok Kanti Sharma said the incident stemmed from the death of a newborn and a subsequent altercation between students and the patient's relatives.

"To prevent the situation from escalating further, we removed the child's relatives from the scene. Legal action will be taken based on any written complaint submitted," he said.

Puja Rani, the mother of the deceased newborn, said her first child was born on 15 May and was later admitted to the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit after falling ill.

"Yesterday was the first time my baby drank my breast milk and held my hand with a smile," Puja said.

She alleged that nurses and doctors had been negligent from the beginning of the treatment process.

Photo: TBS

"In the evening, a nurse informed me that my child had died. After the death, my brother complained about negligence by the doctors on duty. They became enraged and dragged my brother and another relative from the second floor to the ground floor while beating them and later confined them," she alleged.

Puja also claimed that the newborn's body and her two relatives were kept confined for nearly seven hours before being released after she begged for forgiveness.

The child's father, Ujjal Das, said the baby developed breathing complications in the evening, prompting the family to seek help from doctors.

"At that time, intern doctors were in the room. They declared the child dead. My brother-in-law became emotional and asked the intern doctors not to leave the ward. Then he and another person were assaulted," he said.

Following reports that two relatives had been confined, hospital authorities, including the hospital director, the principal of the medical college and members of Kotwali Model Police Station, went to the scene.

Medical students later demanded exemplary punishment for the two detained individuals.

A medical student, Munayat Mun, claimed some students were harassed during the commotion near the neonatal ward.

"We heard shouting while leaving a classroom beside the neonatal ward. One man pulled at some students' hands, scarves and bags and behaved inappropriately. We took shelter in a room with the help of nurses. Later, two male batchmates tried to calm him down, but he also broke their mobile phones as well. We eventually left the area after hiding our uniforms," the student alleged.

However, eyewitness Amir Hossain claimed that the intern doctors severely beat the two men after the family alleged improper treatment following the child's death.

Another witness, Sohel Rana, said, "They were being beaten badly. At first, we thought thieves had been caught. Later, we heard that doctors were beating the relatives of a deceased child."

Hospital Director Brigadier General AKM Mashiul Munir said the matter had been resolved through discussions with both parties.

"We want students to be able to move around the campus in uniform normally, while patients should also receive proper treatment. We have many problems, which will need to be resolved gradually with patience," he added.