KOTA KINABALU: Investigations into any discrepancies or weaknesses by staff at the Tuaran district hospital following a teenager's death from dengue are being carried out by the Sabah Health Department .
Its director Datuk Dr Asits Sanna said a preliminary investigation based on the 18-year-old's medical records showed that the boy was brought to the hospital’s Emergency and Trauma Department on Dec 25.
The teenager showed symptoms of heartburn (epigastric pain) and had vomited for a day but did not complain of other symptoms such as fever, diarrhoea, chest pain or shortness of breath.
The patient’s vital signs and body temperature were also stable during the treatment, Dr Asits said, adding gastric and anti-vomiting medicine were administered intravenously.
The patient was allowed to go home after a six-hour observation, Dr Asits said in a statement Wednesday (Jan 3).
The patient was advised to return immediately to the hospital if his condition worsened and was prescribed painkillers and gastric medicine.
On Dec 28, the patient came back with symptoms of nosebleed, fever, vomiting, diarrhoea and also a lack of appetite.
The medical doctor immediately diagnosed it as dengue and referred him to Hospital Queen Elizabeth 2 here for further treatment on the same day. The boy was pronounced dead at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), the same day.
The issue of poor diagnosis in the case of the teenager at the Tuaran hospital was highlighted by Tuaran MP Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau in a Facebook post after he visited the family who were mourning the boy's death.
He claimed that the boy was only admitted on the third visit to the hospital when he was diagnosed with hemorrhagic dengue.
Dr Asits said that the department is continuing a thorough and transparent investigation into the case and also identifying possible improvements that can be put in place.
He said the Tuaran hospital has four specialists on duty (a physician, two paediatricians and a trauma specialist) on duty.
The teenager was the second child among six boys in the family.
The teenager's father Erwend Noun, 47, meanwhile apologised for the mix-up in information provided to Madius and confirmed his son was only taken twice to the Tuaran hospital.
“On behalf of our family, I apologise for the wrong information given to Tuaran MP. Perhaps this was due to us still mourning at the time, causing an accidental mistake," he said in confirming that his son was sent to the hospital on Dec 25 and Dec 28.
