S.A Shofiee from Sylhet :At least 32 people, including 10 children, died at Sylhet Osmani Medical College Hospital in last 24 hours ending at 8:00am on Tuesday.Family members of the victims categorically blamed wrong treatment and negligence of on-duty doctors for the death of the children. Of the deceased 10 children, four were newborn and six were from six months to seven years of age. Denying the allegation, Deputy Director of the hospital Dr Abdus Salam said, “The children have died because they were suffering from cold-related diseases.”But another hospital source said that three of the children died due to birth complexities, three for pneumonia and four for diarrhoea related diseases. The dead children were identified as one-day-old Chanda Rani, Asma Begum and Nilufar, Yasmin (3 days), Akash (7 days), Nadira (6 months), three-and-a-half years old Tazria, one-and-a-half years old Samia, two-and-a-half years old Mahadi, and Shapraj,3.”Thirty-two patients, including 10 children, died of different diseases in last 24 hour till Tuesday morning,” MIS section officer of the Hospital Saiful Malek said.Meanwhile, a three-member probe committee, led by Professor Dr Ismail Patwary, Head of Other committee members are: Prof Dr Monojir Ali, Head of Pediatric Department and Dr Ranjan Kumar Roy, Resident Medical Officer (Medicine). The committee has been asked to submit its report within three days.State Minister for Health and Family Welfare Zahid Malek told a press briefing at the Secretariat in the capital Dhaka on Tuesday that a probe-body with a joint secretary as its head would be formed to investigate the incident. The probe committee will be asked to submit its report within three days.The State Minister claimed that no unusual incident happened at Sylhet hospital in last 24 hours till 8am on Tuesday that caused deaths of 32 patients, including 10 children.’It is a big hospital where some 2,000 patients are provided with treatment daily. Usually, 12-15 people die here every day. We’ve come to know that some critically injured people got admitted to the hospital after a clash, while some were brought dead and it rose the number of deaths,’ the junior minister explained the situation. At the press briefing, Director General of Health Department Dr. Din Mohammad Nurul Haque said, 10 children died of various critical diseases and other 22 people died of diabetics, heart disease and injuries.He said, “The children died normally. Four of them died due to diseases caused from the complexity of their mothers during their pregnancy period, three from septicaemia with malnutrition, one for intestine problem, two for Diarrhoea and broncho-pneumonia.” Regarding the deaths of 22 others, he said, “Four died in brain stroke, three in acute heart attack, two in normal heart attack, one each in tuberculosis, diabetic, brain infection and anaemia.”He also said that they would take appropriate steps if anyone was found guilty for the deaths.
