KARACHI, Oct 16: The administration of the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) has launched an inquiry into the death of a 30-year-old man who died due to alleged negligence on the part of doctors.

A meeting was held on Thursday afternoon between some senior doctors and the family members of Mohammad Arshad, who died in the early hours of Saturday. At the meeting, the relatives of the deceased apprised the doctors of their grievances.

They claimed that Mr Arshad, son of Mohammad Zafar, had been shifted from the Government Hospital Korangi no 5 to the JPMC’s casualty ward at about 3.45pm on Friday. He remained at the ward for about three hours during which period he was hardly attended to.

At about 7pm he was shifted to ward no 6. There too he was not properly attended to, they claimed. The blood and urine investigations which had been advised at 8pm were carried out at about 10.30pm.

However, due to faulty collection of blood, the results were not reliable, said Mr Arshad’s family. At about 8pm Atrum and Gravinad injections, besides a drip, were administered.

Soon afterwards, Mr Arshad started complaining of shortness of breath. The doctors were asked by the patient, and also his attendants, to administer oxygen but nothing was done by the doctors present, they claimed.

A postgraduate doctor had advised, at about 11.30pm, that oxygen be administered and a tube be passed for urine. This advice was ignored by the house officers. Only an IV injection was administered at about 12.15am.

They said that soon afterwards, Mr Arshad breathed his last. After his death a CPR was administered in the presence of several doctors who had gathered around his bed. An injection was administered too, in vain of course.

Mr Arshad’s family said the deceased had been brought to the hospital in a reasonable condition. He had gone to the hospital on his own two feet and had only complained of mild diarrhoea and vomiting.

They asked the JPMC’s senior doctors to allow an inquiry in which they could take part. They said the doctors who had handled the case should also be allowed to participate.

However, the family was told that Thursday’s meeting had been held so that their grievances could be recorded and noted. The concerned doctors’ point of view would now be recorded and a report would be prepared and sent to the Federal Health Department, Islamabad.

Meanwhile, when contacted by Dawn, the JPMC’s administration claimed that Mr Arshad had been brought to the hospital in a very bad condition. “His haemoglobin was too low and other indicators too were very bad,” said Prof Kazi Abdul Shakoor, the hospital’s director.

Dr Seemin Jamali, a deputy director, said the medicine given to the deceased — Atrum and Gravinad — were recognized drugs.

The JPMC’s director said Mr Arshad suffered from a severe form of malaria.

Another doctor, however, said Mr Arshad was suffering from Saleiparum Malaria.