Botched C-Section: Akhi was under care of Sangjukta
Mahbuba Rahman Akhi was admitted to Central Hospital under gynaecologist Sangjukta Saha, the hospital authorities claimed yesterday.
"We have all the related documents. We will give details on completion of an investigation," hospital Manager Mamunur Rashid Russell told reporters on the premises of the institution.
After communicating with Sangjukta's "personal secretary and driver Md Zamir", Akhi along with her husband Yakub Ali Sumon reached the hospital around 12:30am on June 10, the manager said, adding that Akhi was then admitted under Sangjukta.
But the physician had left the hospital around 9:30pm to go abroad, Mamunur said.
"She did not inform the hospital authorities about her leaving. We came to know about it around 4:00am [on June 10]."
The manager also claimed that Akhi was first taken to Titas Upazila Health Complex in Cumilla. " She was probably advised to undergo a C-section by the doctors there. But she was taken to our hospital for normal delivery."
However, Akhi's husband Yakub dismissed the claim.
"We didn't find any physician at the Titas Upazila Health Complex. We returned home as the attending nurses there found everything normal after examining my wife," he told The Daily Star yesterday.
"We expected treatment from Dr Sangjukta Saha and we were assured of it. Dr Shahzadi and Dr Muna in their confessional statements to a Dhaka court said they just followed the instruction of Dr Sangjukta Saha while treating my wife," he said.
He said though he sued only those who were directly involved in taking care of his wife, neither Sangjukta nor the hospital authorities can avoid their responsibilities.
Earlier, the hospital authorities postponed yesterday's press conference on the deaths of Akhi and her newborn, saying that they would hold the briefing after their investigation ends.
"Due to legal bindings, we cannot hold the press conference until the probe is completed. The investigation committee has sought seven more days. We have asked them to finish the probe in next four days," MA Quasem, vice-president of the board of directors at Central Hospital, told this newspaper yesterday morning.
He said the were preparing replies to Sangjukta's false claims.
Akhi died on June 18, eight days after the death of her newborn baby.
Doctors who conducted an autopsy primarily found that she died due to excessive bleeding.
On June 14, her husband Yakub filed a case with Dhanmondi Police Station, accusing the doctors concerned and the hospital of botched C-section and fraud.
Two attending doctors -- Shahzadi Mustarshida Sultana and Muna Shaha -- were sent to jail by a Dhaka Metropolitan Court the following day. They are among the six physicians and supporting staffers accused in the case.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Sangjukta blamed the hospital authorities for the deaths of Akhi and her newborn baby. Sangjukta also said Zamir was an employee of the hospital, not her assistant.
This newspaper could not reach Sangjukta for comments as she did not answer the phone. Zamir's phone was also found switched off.
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