THE TEMASEK REVIEW

Written by Our Correspondent

In the span of less than a month, the National University Hospital is hit by another medical negligence lawsuit which raises serious questions about its standards of care and safety.

Madam Tee Soh Hah, a 58 year old kidney patient who became bedridden from a routine dialysis session due to a disconnected bloodline which caused her heart to stop beating temporarily is suing NUH for alleged medical negligence.

She is seeking damages for pain and suffering, as well as costs related to medical treatment and job loss.

NUH is denying the claims and counter-suing for some $164,000 in unpaid medical bills.

The plaintiff must establish that the tube became disconnected due to negligence by NUH staff and not by the movements of the patient which might have dislodged it.

Two suits were filed last month against NUH as well. The first suit was filed by lawyer Madan Assomull on behalf of a liver cancer patient who claims that she had a needle wrongly embedded in her heart instead of her liver when she was undergoing treatment.

She needed emergency surgery to remove the needle. She survived and was discharged about two weeks later. The woman now claims she can no longer work as a cleaner as her lower limbs are weak, she tires easily and has swelling in her feet.

In the second suit, the patient was a national serviceman, Corporal Peh who became paralyzed after surgery for a fracture in the left shoulder.

Corporal Peh stopped breathin five minutes after he was wheeled to the recovery ward. Though resuscitation was successful in saving his life, he suffered irreversible brain damage and was paralyzed.

Corporal Peh died of pneumonia on July 29 this year, three years and four months after the incident.

Both parties are seeking $500,000 each in damages, according to a report in the state media.

In the same month alone, two patients were given an overdose of chemotherapy drugs at KK Hospital. There were no subsequent reports on the conditions of the patients.

Medical blunders like these are not uncommon in Singapore public hospitals where the junior doctors and nurses are often overworked with inadequate rest.

A report released by the Ministry of Health lately revealed there were 4o1 hospital errors reported over the past seven years, or about one every week. Public hospitals, with heavier caseloads and more complicated cases, made 339 reports and private hospitals 62.

Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan, who made a rare apology to the KKH victims on his blog is currently soliciting views from the public on the healthcare budget next year which he has revealed on the MOH Facebook.

Singapore’s healthcare system is rated one of the best in the world by the World Health Organization (WHO). It is a hybrid between a private insurance system like in the United States and a state-sponsored system like the National Health System in the United Kingdom.

Related articles:

>> MOH: one error a week in Singapore’s hospitals

>> Khaw Boon Wan: I write my own blog

>>  Another medical blunder at NUH

>> KKH chemo blunder: Son of victim described pharmacists responsible for error as “idiots”

>> Interview with Mr Ng Chun Kiat

>> Son of KKH victim of medication error disputes reports in state media

>> KKH medication error: Khaw dismissed worker fatigue as cause

>> Was medication error at KKH caused by fatigue?

>> KKH CEO Prof Ivy Ng yet to apologize for drug blunder

8 Responses to “NUH hit by another medical negligence lawsuit”