The Health Affairs Department in Madinah has set up a committee to investigate a complaint by a parent that his six-year-old daughter died earlier this week at a medical facility in the city due to negligence.

Health Affairs spokesman Abdul Razzaq Hafez said that the complaint would be referred to the coroner to determine whether a fatal medical error led to the death of Ghala Adel Al-Hiyousi. 

Ghala’s father told the department that his six-year-old daughter was hospitalized with pneumonia and was admitted to the intensive care unit because she was suffering from seizures.

“I lost my young daughter due the medical negligence of the maternity hospital team in Madinah,” he said.

He said that his daughter was hospitalized and the nurses reassured his wife that if Ghala faced difficulty breathing, they would be available for assistance. However, his daughter began having seizures around noon but there was no one around until 3 p.m.

“My wife called the nurse and asked the doctors about her daughter’s case, but they said they don’t know. By the time we sought the help of a cardiologist and moved her to the ICU, her heart had stopped beating,” he said.

The kingdom has recently witnessed numerous cases of patient deaths due to fatal health care errors. In the most high profile case, the prestigious Dr. Erfan and Bagedo Hospital was placed under suspension by the Ministry of Health for at least two months last year after the death of a prominent industrialist's grandson while under treatment at the hospital.