Parents mull legal action over cut on infant's head

NST: SEREMBAN: A mother’s joy at giving birth to a baby daughter turned into horror when her husband discovered a deep cut on the back of the infant’s head.
Norazian Yaacob, a 27-year-old housewife, claimed her baby had suffered the cut during a Caesarean section.
The wound on the back of Nur Alya Sabrina’s head has now become larger as it is now infected.
"As I am a diabetic and had a problem during the delivery of my second child, I had requested a Caesarean section," said Norazian at her house in Taman Desa Chembong near here.
She said she underwent the surgery on the night of March 8 and the next day, she was told by her husband, Ruzaimi Mahadi, 28, that there was a cut at the back of their daughter’s head.
"When my husband met the doctor who performed the surgery, she told my husband that the cut could have happened while the baby was still in the womb," Norazian said.
However, her husband, who is self-employed, told the doctor that was not possible as the cut looked like it was caused by a sharp object.
"Only later did the doctor say that she was not sure how the cut could have happened and that it was possible that it had happened during the Caesarean section," Norazian said.
She said Nur Alya Sabrina was discharged from the hospital a few days later but the baby would not stop crying.
"When we took her for a medical check-up at the Rembau health clinic on March 14, we were told that the cut was infected. We were also told to take her to the hospital, which we did on the same day," said Norazian.
When they got to the hospital, Norazian and her husband met three doctors — the doctor who had performed the Caesarean section, an obstetrician and a paediatrician.
All three allegedly told them that there was no need for the cut to be sutured as it would heal on its own.
"Our baby was warded for two weeks before she was allowed to go home," said Norazian, adding that she and her husband had also lodged a police report.
She said when she took Nur Alya Sabrina for a follow-up treatment last month, the doctor told her that the wound now needed to be sutured as excess flesh had formed around it.
"The procedure was set for later that month but it was postponed until June 12. However, a week after the procedure, the stitches were infected and had to be removed and cleaned," said Norazian, adding that now, the wound had to be cleaned every day.
She said she and her husband had written a letter of complaint to the director of the hospital.
"We received a reply, which was signed by the director, in which he apologised and said the doctor who performed the Caesarean section had been reprimanded," Norazian said.
The couple is now considering legal action against the hospital.