Clinic At The Labuan UTC Refused To Admit A Baby Because It Was Closing Time
Even joked if the parents wanted to pay for overtime to get the baby treated.
By Sadho Ram — 06 Apr 2016, 05:56 PM
You know apathy has run deep among healthcare professionals in the country when a child having an asthma attack and in dire need of oxygen is refused care because it was the clinic's "closing time"
Because that's what happened to 36-year-old mother Harnizum Sulaiman's one-year-old baby, who had trouble breathing and was taken to a clinic at the Labuan UTC for help, The ST reported
The incident that happened on 4 April has left the parents fuming
Harnizum, who is from Beaufort, but was in Labuan to attend prayers for her late brother, along with her husband and siblings had gone to the clinic at the Labuan UTC.
However, instead of admitting the baby, who was having a stroke of asthma, the clinic staff refused because it was 15 minutes before closing time. They reached there at 4:45, the clinic's closing time is 5pm, The Star online reported.
"Instead of attending to my baby immediately, the two women nurses there asked me to bring him to the hospital emergency ward because it was almost closing time and they wanted to rest," the mother was quoted by The Star as saying.
The mother, who was already crying and begging for them to help the baby, also said, "They even joked if we wanted to pay for their overtime if we insisted on getting my baby treated then and there"
Later, the mother brought her baby to Labuan Hospital where he was admitted for a day.
"Luckily, my child is now okay,", the mother was quoted as saying by The Star Online.
She added that as health personnel, they should be more responsible and caring towards people’s lives. "This is a matter of life and death and should not be taken lightly."