Hospital admits 'subjectivity' in dialysis incident in Nghe An
(Baonghean.vn) - The Deputy Director of Nghe An General Hospital admitted that the doctor was subjective and will take disciplinary action and remind responsible individuals.
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| Leaders of the Provincial General Friendship Hospital provide information to the press. Photo: PV |
On the afternoon of August 2, Nghe An Provincial General Hospital met with the press to discuss some information surrounding the dialysis incident that occurred on the afternoon of July 30.
According to the hospital's leadership, the day after the incident was discovered, the unit stopped the dialysis system including 23 dialysis machines; took RO water samples and sent them to the Hanoi Institute of Occupational Health and Environment for testing.
At the same time, the hospital also transferred 132 patients undergoing periodic hemodialysis here to other filtration facilities in the province; invited experts from Bach Mai Hospital to check the quality of input water and output water of any RO machine.
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| The dialysis system of the Provincial General Hospital of Friendship had an incident. Photo: PV |
After the incident, 3 patients had mild symptoms of chills, fever of 38 degrees Celsius... and were discharged home after treatment. 3 seriously ill patients, Ms. Dang Thi Truong (62 years old, in Quynh Giang commune, Quynh Luu district), Ho Thi Loc (29 years old, in Hung Tay commune, Hung Nguyen district) and Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong (33 years old, in Nam Linh commune, Nam Dan) had symptoms of severe shock, multiple organ failure, chills, low blood pressure and were treated at the hospital's Intensive Care - Emergency Department.
After that, the two patients Loc and Hong were transferred to Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi for treatment according to their families' wishes. According to information from Bach Mai Hospital, the condition of these two patients is improving.
Doctor is subjective?
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| After receiving intensive treatment, Ms. Truong's health is showing positive changes. Photo: PV |
Speaking to reporters, patient Dang Thi Truong said she had been on dialysis at the hospital for 8 years. On the day of the incident, she was the third patient in the dialysis session. After dialysis for about 5 minutes, she experienced symptoms of pain and cold... "I had to cover myself with 2 blankets, feeling uncomfortable all over. This is the first time I have had this strange feeling," Ms. Truong said, adding that when she had this symptom, she reported her health condition to the doctor on duty here and called her family in.
She then continued to undergo dialysis for another 2 hours (dialysis usually lasts over 3 hours). Only when she was in “unbearable pain”, had a fever of 39.1 degrees Celsius, had a stiff abdomen, felt dizzy, and could not breathe did the dialysis process have to stop.
Mrs. Truong was then transferred to the Tropical Diseases Department, then the Emergency Resuscitation Department for emergency treatment. This patient was the first to have a bad development. After she was given emergency treatment, other cases with bad developments appeared.
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| Ms. Dang Thi Truong said: After running for 5 minutes, she felt pain, cold, and discomfort. Photo: PV |
A patient undergoing dialysis at the Department of Nephrology - Urology - Hemodialysis on the afternoon of July 30 also said that not only the 6 people above had experienced discomfort, but he himself also felt the same. However, as soon as he felt discomfort, he requested to have the machine removed immediately so that it did not get worse.
As Ms. Truong said, it is clear that the incident of 6 people with bad developments would not have happened and could have been prevented if the Department of Nephrology - Urology - Dialysis had stopped the dialysis activity immediately when the first bad case occurred. However, even when there was a bad case, the dialysis activity was still continued. It is estimated that on July 30, there were about 60 patients who received dialysis.
Responding to Nghe An Newspaper reporters on this issue, Dr. Tran Tat Thang - Deputy Director of the Provincial General Hospital of Friendship admitted that hemodialysis often causes various complications. Patients whose condition worsens have other underlying diseases and are in poor health.
“Therefore, patients often have reactions. In this case, each doctor has a different way of handling it. Here, the doctor was subjective, allowing the incident to happen,” Dr. Thang said, adding that after having a specific conclusion, the hospital will have a form of handling and reminding the responsible individuals.
Suspicious water source
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| After the incident, the Department of Nephrology - Urology - Dialysis temporarily stopped operating, 132 patients were transferred to other hospitals. Photo: PV |
Information from Bach Mai Hospital, Hanoi: Blood culture results of 2 patients were positive for Burkholderia Cepacia bacteria. Patients were diagnosed with septic shock. Complications in artificial kidneys have causes related to many factors, so it is difficult to test to determine immediately.
The subsequent developments after this medical incident show that the authorities are focusing their suspicions on the RO water source for dialysis. Currently, Nghe An Provincial General Hospital and experts from Bach Mai Hospital have taken water samples and sent them to the Institute of Occupational and Environmental Health, Ministry of Health for testing.
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| A doctor from the Department of Nephrology explains the dialysis process. Photo: PV |
It is expected that by the end of this afternoon (August 2), the test results of this water source will be available.
Meanwhile, Nghe An General Hospital said: The water source for dialysis at the hospital is normal tap water, filtered and treated through a machine system before being used for patients...
Consider the responsibility of the head
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| Doctor Nguyen Xuan Hong - Deputy Director of the Department of Health said: We will ask for support from the investigation agency if we encounter difficulties. Photo: PV |
Doctor Nguyen Xuan Hong - Deputy Director of Nghe An Department of Health said: Immediately after the incident occurred, Nghe An Department of Health decided to establish a Working Group to advise on handling medical incidents. After the working session on the morning of August 1, the Director of Nghe An Department of Health issued an official dispatch requesting the Provincial General Hospital to stop hemodialysis; conduct a review of the entire hemodialysis process to determine the exact cause; thoroughly resolve the causes until absolute safety is ensured, report to the Department of Health for consideration and written consent before resuming hemodialysis; organize monitoring, treatment and regular contact with Bach Mai Hospital to ensure maximum efforts in treating patients.
The representative of the Department of Health also said: After the incident occurred, the Provincial Police Department also proactively grasped the situation. In this case, the health sector will consider inviting the investigation agency to intervene when encountering difficulties... The responsibility for the incident lies with the head of the Hospital. This is a lesson for the entire health sector.