Investigations into the ghastly discovery of an apparently discarded fetus which was tucked under a hospital bed in the observation section of the Accident and Emergency Ward of the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH) last month have concluded, and while the blunder had placed another “black-eye” on the public institution, the persons who were supposedly responsible were simply handed warning letters with instructions that they “must do better” in future instances.
The incident happened on June 13, and according to the Chief Executive Officer of the KHMH, Dr. Gary Longsworth, who tried to explain what actually happened in an interview with the media today, the embarrassing incident was a result of a process that was basically not understood.
He said, “The investigation is over essentially, and there were some lapses; some of them were explainable and some of them not so explainable, but the outcome of it is that we have issued warning letters – in a few cases, final warning letters – to the individuals concerned that they must do better.”
In the wake of the incident, the police had launched an investigation, but up to this point, there has been no word on the progress of those investigations.
After conducting an internal investigation, the KHMH, via what could be considered a sheepish press release, subsequently classified the incident as “a clear link between a patient encounter and the product of conception,” which, he said, “sadly, established that appropriate procedures were not followed”. Dr. Longsworth described those procedures as a “normal” process in terms of managing and releasing the patient, except that the fetus “unfortunately” ended up under the hospital bed in that particular instance.
“I think what started the issue was a staff member who did not understand – a relatively recently employed member who did not understand the process that needed to be carried out, and that was the start of it”, Dr. Longsworth mentioned, responding to questions about exactly which department erred in discharging their duties.
According to the CEO, that particular person has been issued a strong warning letter in addition to unspecified remedial action as a consequence of gross negligence.
In related news, Amandala understands that Dr. Longsworth will no longer be at the helm of the national referral hospital, as his 6-year tenure as CEO will conclude this September, and the KHMH Board of Directors has decided not to renew his contract, even though he reportedly requested a renewal.
One of the most sensational incidents that occurred since Dr. Longsworth assumed reigns at the hospital in 2008 was the dramatic, successive deaths of 13 newborn babies in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in May of 2013, most due to a suspected bacterial outbreak – an incident which Longsworth purportedly later learned about on the evening news.