JEDDAH, 13 April 2005 — A Bangladeshi worker has filed a complaint with the Ministry of Health asking it to investigate the circumstances of the removal of his wife’s uterus at a private hospital in Jeddah. Syed Aref Sarwar, who works with a contracting company, claims that due to the hospital’s negligence and incorrect treatment his 25-year-old wife is now unable to have children.
Sarwar’s wife, Zinat, went to Dr. Siddiqa Maternity Hospital from the beginning of her pregnancy. She had no problems or complications and a normal delivery was anticipated. Sarwar brought his wife to the hospital on Feb. 23. She was admitted at 9:30 a.m. and was kept under observation until 7 p.m. Half hour later the doctors, Marianne Sayeed and Imam Banoo, informed Sarwar that a caesarean section would be necessary and at 9 p.m., a baby girl was safely delivered. Zinat was taken to her room where, according to Sarwar, she was left unobserved until 10:45 p.m. when the duty nurse checked and found the bed soaked with blood. The nurse informed the doctors who requested blood donations as the hospital was out of stock.
Sarwar’s colleagues donated blood on the spot though the hospital initially refused to accept their donated blood. Zinat was again taken to the operating room where, without his consent or knowledge, her uterus was removed.
Sarwar told Arab News, “The hospital justifies the removal of her uterus by giving me many medical reasons, but I strongly believe that the major reason is their total carelessness in handling my wife.”
Sarwar’s insurance company complained to the hospital and asked for an investigation. The hospital’s director, Dr. Mustafa Kamal Pasha, said in a letter: “The hospital made all efforts to ensure that Sarwar’s wife received the best possible care in a timely manner. We have reviewed the medical file in detail and are comfortable that proper care was administered.” He explained that the hospital does not practice a policy of withholding any type of treatment and that there may have been some miscommunication regarding prescriptions.
Concerning the blood, the reason for not accepting donors was that there was pre-screened blood available, but when additional amounts were required, the hospital called for donors. The doctor also pointed out that after the surgery, Sarwar was almost hysterical and there was great difficulty communicating with him. The presence of 25 of Sarwar’s colleagues in the hospital made communication even more difficult.
The medical report indicates that the umbilical cord was wound twice around the infant’s neck which accounted for her non-descent and necessitated the caesarean. Zinat was moved to her room at 10 p.m. with the necessary IV lines. At 11 p.m. she was found to be bleeding profusely and resuscitative measures were applied as well as bimanual compression of uterus. Blood and other medications were administered but the patient continued to bleed so the husband was informed and the patient was taken to the operating room at 1:20 a.m. “On re-opening the abdomen, stitches in the uterus were found intact but the uterus was flabby and rapidly filling with blood if massage was stopped. Uterine clamps were applied but uterus still failed to contract in spite of hot packs and other measures. As a life-saving measure, decision for subtotal hysterectomy was taken and bleeding was controlled only after uterus was removed,” said the report. She was discharged ten days later in good condition.
“This was the patient’s first baby and we tried to make it a normal delivery. It is not unusual for a woman to be in labor for 12 hours or longer,” said Dr. Marianne Sayeed to Arab News in explaining why the decision to perform a caesarean was not made immediately. “It was a rather unfortunate case but it could happen, even after a normal delivery,” she said regarding the bleeding and the consequent hysterectomy.
“When the bleeding started, we tried everything to control it but we had no choice but to remove the uterus in order to save her life. The most important thing now is that the baby and the mother are safe,” said Dr. Sayeed. She explained that the patient’s room was well equipped, that the duty nurses and doctors monitored the patient’s condition and she herself had come immediately when the patient was found to be bleeding more than normal.
Even though Dr. Sayeed and Dr. Kamal Pasha both said they were willing to discuss the case with Sarwar, he told Arab News that they had not been cooperative. He says that his wife is feeling weak. He has not told her yet that her uterus has been removed and that she cannot bear children anymore.
