‘No lapse’ by nurses in baby’s death in Barili

There was ‘no negligence” on the part of two nurses who attended to a four-month-old boy who died in the Barili District Hospital last week, a provincial official said.

Dr. Cynthia Genosolango, head of the Provincial Health Office (PHO), said there was a miscommunication between the nurses and the child’s grandmother in explaining the oxygen given to the baby through a nasal tube to help his breathing.

“There are just some of us who are very good at explaining, but those we are explaining to just don’t get it. When you recite the alphabet to them or show a PowerPoint presentation and they still don’t get it, it’s time to call someone else to deliver the information. Maybe then they’ll understand,” Genosolango said in a press conference yesterday.

The attending nurses were already reprimanded and reminded what to do in similar cases in the future, she said, that is to refer to the doctor.

The baby’s death certificate said the immediate cause of death was acute respiratory distress syndrome, acute gastroenteritis, and infectious diarrhea with moderate fever dehydration.

The infant was referred by a private clinic to the district hospital on Thursday and died the next day. The baby was given IV fluids and oxygen, but no antibiotics.

Dr. Genosolango said the child was already at high risk when he was brought to the hospital and apparently was not breastfed by the mother.

She said that anything that gets into the mouth of the child, which in this case was probably milk from a bottle, should be sterilized first.

“If the bottle is given directly without sterilizing it, then the probability would be high that by the time the child is one year old, he’s been in a hospital several times due to diarrheal diseases,” she added.

The baby received an immunization shot a day before admission to the Barili District Hospital. Genosolango said that one effect of immunization shots is fever, but it can never cause diarrhea.
There are oral vaccines which may cause soft to liquid stools, but this is mainly because of a problem in absorption.
The baby’s diarrhea, Genosolango said, may have been caused by something else.
Dr. Genosolango said it is not for her to say whether the case is closed but that hopes lessons were learned from what happened.
Department of Health (DOH-7) Regional Director Jaime Bernadas said the PHO was tasked to conduct the investigation.
Genosolango said that during difficult circumstances, information that needs to be explained to parents or guardians has to be referred to the doctor or medical officer on duty.
“We are very careful especially with seriously ill patients because we know it’s a big deal. The family should be informed about everything,” said Genosolango.
She vouched for the performance of the doctors in Barili, saying they are “very good” and “committed.”
The baby, Brian James Pinote, was brought to Barili District Hospital on December 10 and was recommended for admission due to severe dehydration.
The child’s grandmother, Saturnina Mari, complained that the baby had difficulty breathing with the nose tube and that nurses just dismissed her lament, saying the baby was fine only to have the infant die hours after.