LAHORE, April 15: The committee probing into the alleged negligence of the Services Hospital’s doctors in providing treatment to the injured son of a Dawn staffer has not fixed any responsibility despite finding three major faults on their part.

In its two-page report the committee had declared that Sami Aleem, 16, had almost cent per cent mortality when he was received at the Trauma Centre but he was promptly attended.

Punjab Minister for Health Prof Dr Mahmood Ahmad Chaudhry has delayed action on the report till ‘comments by a senior expert.’

The three major faults as enlisted by the committee are: the duty doctors had not contacted the consultant neurosurgeon for advice on the head injuries of Sami; shifted him to a ward instead of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and had allowed his shifting to the Lahore General Hospital alone and without resuscitation arrangements.

Sami, the elder son of Dawn’s special political correspondent Ashraf Mumtaz, was injured when a car driven by a woman hit him. He remained at the Trauma Centre for several hours. He died on his way to the General Hospital when his parents, who came to know about the incident late, tried to shift him there after finding the treatment at the Services Hospital inadequate.

The report said that the deputy director and director emergency should have contacted the consultant neurosurgeon on call on their own or send a conveyance to fetch him from his house. The neurosurgery medical officer should have treated the patient in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) instead of shifting him to the neurosurgery ward.

The deputy director and director emergency should not have allowed an ambulance carrying an unconscious patient without a referral slip and a doctor trained in resuscitation.

It also noted that the neurosurgery MO should have got in writing from the patient’s father that he was taking his son on his own.

The report also said that necessary resuscitative measures were taken. The X-ray of skull and CT Scan of brain were also conducted. It said the clinical and radiological evidence of an unconscious patient had fixed dilated pupils and GCS of 5/15, having extensive brain injury on CT Scan had almost cent per cent mortality.

The committee made these observations in its report after examining documentation, recording statements and cross questioning different hospital personnel directly or indirectly involved in the management of the late Sami Aleem.

According to the report, the patient was received in the Services Hospital’s Trauma Centre at about 3.35pm on April 2. No time was wasted in medico-legal or other formalities. He was straightaway shifted to the operation theatre where maximum possible medical and nursing emergency treatment was carried out.

The report said the unconscious patient was bleeding from nose, mouth and both the ears. He had fixed dilated bilateral pupils with glascow coma scale 5/15 and breathing spontaneously.

After initial resuscitation, the report said, medical officer on duty accompanied him to the X-Ray department. An urgent X-Ray of the skull was carried out which showed extensive fracture skull. The neuro surgical unit was called.

The medical officer on duty of the neurosurgery department examined him in the Trauma Centre and after evaluating the patient’s serious condition, requested an urgent CT Scan for brain and skull.

The deputy director and director emergency facilitated the expensive investigation free of charge because the patient was brought unknown. The neurosurgery medical officer accompanied the patient during the CT Scan, the report said.

After getting the verbal report of the CT Scan which was showing serious and almost fatal injuries of brain and skull, the neurosurgery doctor tried to contact the consultant neurosurgeon on call.

Meanwhile, the patient was shifted to the neurosurgery ward where he was managed. While neurosurgery MO was trying to contact the consultant neurosurgeon on call, the patient’s father arrived in the ward and insisted to take his son to Lahore General Hospital, which he did.

The deputy director and director emergency arranged the ambulance on the insistence of patient’s father and patient was taken from Services Hospital in the ambulance and on the way the patient died.

The Services Hospital principal executive officer has sent the report to the Punjab governor, health minister and health secretary.

The minister for health has directed the department to send the inquiry report to a senior expert for his comments. “Action on the report will be taken after the comments received by the expert,” the minister said.

Sami was injured on April 2 when a car had hit his motorcycle on Kutcha Ferozepur Road. Some youngsters took him to the Services Hospital where the duty doctors did not provide him necessary treatment. Sami was being shifted to the Lahore General Hospital when he died.

Services Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Riaz Chaudhry had on April 3 constituted the four-member committee with the directive to complete the probe and submit a report within four days.

Hospital’s chief consultant surgeon Dr Abdul Malik Sheikh, associate professor of neurosurgery Dr Muhammad Azhar Javed and director administration Dr Muhammad Javed constitute the committee headed by Prof Mazhar Saeed Chaudhry.

The committee failed to furnish its findings on April 8. Punjab Minister for Health Prof Mahmood Ahmad Chaudhry extended the deadline by seven days but the committee failed to finalize its report.

When contacted, the committee members and the hospital administration had failed to give any plausible reason for the delay.