KARACHI: The father of a nine-month-old girl, who died after she was administered a wrong injection at a private hospital last month, said on Wednesday that his family had signed a legal document with the owners of the health facility concerned and would withdraw cases against them and some staff members.

“We put three demands before the management of the Darul Sehat hospital and all of them have been agreed upon and the agreement has formally been signed by my wife, me and the owners of the hospital,” Qaisar Ali, father of infant Nashwa, told a press conference here at the Karachi Press Club.

The agreement, copies of which were provided to reporters, has been signed by Mr Ali; his wife Shumaila; M/s Darul Shifa International Private Limited, owner of Darul Sehat Hospital, through its chairman Amir Waliuddin Chishti and vice chairman Ali Farhan Razi.

It said Nashwa’s family took their twin daughters to the Darul Sehat Hospital on April 6 with the complaint of vomiting and diarrhoea. The hospital admitted them and a day later a nursing assistant administered an injection to Nashwa “which was against the medical prescriptions and caused cardiac arrest to baby Nashwa”.

The hospital agrees to build a paediatric ICU, set up a fund to help poor patients and to bear expenses of a BDS/MBBS student

It said the hospital immediately shifted the patient to an intensive care unit (ICU) and performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for over 45 minutes on which she revived and she was put on a ventilator. After a few days she was shifted to the Liaquat National Hospital.

The family lodged a complaint at the Sharea Faisal police station and got an FIR registered and subsequently the child died.

“[The family] was aggrieved by the negligence of the hospital staff [a female nurse and a male nursing assistant].”

The agreement said the hospital management, realising the negligence on the part of the hospital staff and with all sympathies to the family, approached to settle the matter with the parents.

The family demanded the establishment of a paediatric ICU and named after the deceased child; scholarship named after Nashwa for one student annually; and a fund for patient welfare and care on ongoing grounds.

Mr Ali said the hospital would build a paediatric ICU in it within a year — by May 31, 2020 to be named Baby Nashwa PICU.

The hospital management would provide one Nashwa Scholarship for a student in which it would be covering full fee for BDS or MBBS. The student would require to be approved by the infant’s family.

Besides, the hospital would also allocate Rs5 million a year in the name of Nashwa Fund for free treatment of poor and needy patients for that the family would be “taken into confidence”.

According to the agreement, the parents would not further pursue their complaint or FIR registered at the Sharea Faisal police station and those involving the hospital staff.

Besides, the family “shall not claim any damages or compensation at any time against the hospital management or any of its staff members, till such time that commitments made by the latter stay intact and are practiced with sincerity”.

Mr Ali said that his family had got the Nashwa Foundation registered, which would work for the welfare of needy and deserving poor patients.

“Our quest will continue to ensure that no such incidents will occur,” said Mr Ali.

Meanwhile, DIG-East Amir Farooqi confirmed that Nashwa’s father had withdrawn the case and submitted a written application to the police stating that he did not want further legal action after out-of-court settlement with the hospital.

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2019