Nabil Al-Khatir’s delight, of having blessed with his first child, turned tragic with the subsequent death of his 32-year-old wife at the Maternity and Children Hospital in Dammam.

Al-Khatir said the hospital asked him to sign a consent form to perform a hysterectomy (the surgical removal of the uterus) on his wife due to severe bleeding.

He said he signed the consent form to ensure that his wife safely pulls through.

“A nurse came to the waiting room and informed me that my wife had died. I wasn’t even clearly informed about the cause of death at the time,” he said.

Al-Khatir received a text message from a worker at the hospital the next day saying that his wife had been neglected and had not received proper medical treatment due to disagreement between the nurses.

Al-Khatir was informed that once they began the surgery, they tried to get the fetus out by suction, but part of the mother’s womb came out with it. The bleeding could not be stopped and her heart stopped beating during the caesarean surgery. She was later pronounced dead.

Khaled Al-Osaimi, a media affairs official at the Directorate of Health Affairs in the Eastern Province, said that the patient had come in an ambulance.

“She complained of delivery complications and was immediately transported to the delivery room, where the fetus and mother’s vital signs were monitored. Three hours later, the patient seemed fatigued and complained of shortness of breath. She was transported to the operating room to help her with the birth. The fetus was suffering from a lack of oxygen and the mother’s vital signs changed. She suffered vaginal bleeding and fell unconscious.”

The husband filed a complaint with the Directorate General of Health Affairs. The directorate called in Al-Khatir on the basis of his complaint.

Assad Saud, media spokesman for the Directorate General of Health Affairs in the Eastern Province, told Arab News, “We have contacted the complainant to fill out a medical complaint form to determine the suspects and he will be briefed shortly.”