JEDDAH: A Health Ministry panel probing the death of a woman at Hail General Hospital has held the maintenance company responsible for the abrupt failure of an oxygen supply system at the hospital’s intensive care unit.
In a statement yesterday, the ministry said the oxygen supply to the hospital’s ICU was cut off as a result of the negligence
of SNAF International’s employee.
“The company official responsible for changing the cylinder was not present at the time of the incident,” the ministry said while announcing its decision not to award any health maintenance contracts to SNAF in the future.
The ministry set up a committee chaired by the director general of hospitals to inquire about the situations that led to the woman’s death. It was formed on the instructions of Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah.
However, the panel said it could not confirm whether there was any link between the woman’s death and the failure of oxygen supply system. However, the panel urged ICU experts to study the woman’s file and question health officials in the region for any shortage in medical services.
The panel advised to pass the issue of the woman’s death to the legal committee soon after the investigation is completed by the ICU experts.
