Doctor gets jail for misdiagnosis

Manama

An Arab doctor, accused in the death of a child in 2012 was yesterday sentenced to six months in jail. But the Lower Criminal Court acquitted an Asian nurse implicated in the same case due to lack of proof. The 11-year-old child died after his medical condition deteriorated, according to court files. He was initially suffering from dysentery, and was examined by the 56-year-old accused at a local private hospital.The latter prescribed to him an injection, which worsened his condition. The child started facing breathing difficulties and his abdomen inflated. The nurse was assigned to monitor the victim’s situation but he was declared dead on November 11, 2012. The doctor and the nurse were tried after a probe panel found the pair was incompetent to handle the patient’s case, and underestimated his disease. The panel’s report also underlined the doctor was too negligent that he didn’t direct the patient to another medical specialist and didn’t advice his family to take him to the intensive care unit. The report also confirmed the accused had misdiagnosed the patient.The nurse was also blamed by the panel for not mastering the basic clinical nursing skills to evaluate the 11-year-old’s condition. The nurse, however, told the court she was only assigned to observe the deceased three hours prior his death.