THE Department of Justice (DOJ) on Sunday ordered the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to probe six hospitals that reportedly turned away a woman seeking medical attention after giving birth at home —rejections which eventually led to her death.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said he instructed the NBI officials to submit in 10 days a report on the death of Kathy Bulatao who, according to reports, gave birth inside her home in Caloocan City on the afternoon of April 24 with the help of a midwife.
Jan Christian Bulatao, the victim’s husband, said his wife suffered complications and was in need of an operation to remove the placenta from her uterus.
He said he first rushed Kathy to North Caloocan Doctors Hospital where she was briefly admitted but was eventually referred to the nearby Commonwealth Hospital and Medical Center (CHMC) due to lack of blood supply for the victim.
However, the husband claimed the CHMC did not accept them due to lack of rooms and the presence of Covid-19 patients in the hospital.
Jan said he was forced to travel to the Far Eastern University (FEU) Hospital in Fairview, where they were reportedly asked to give a down payment of P30,000.
Since he did not have the money for a down payment at that time, Jan said he decided to bring his wife to the Bermudez Polymedic Hospital in Caloocan but they were told by the hospital that it has no equipment to do the necessary operation.
This prompted them to seek medical assistance at the Skyline Hospital and Medical Center and Grace General Hospital in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan, but both said they did not have an obstetrician available.
The last hospital they went to was the San Jose del Monte General Hospital. Although this hospital did not turn them way, it was already too late for his wife, who was declared dead upon arrival by doctors.
Bulatao was the second case referred by Guevarra to the NBI involving people who were turned away by hospitals during the enforcement of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon.
The first case involved the death of 65-year-old Ladislao Cabling from Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija, who reportedly died hours after he was denied by six hospitals.
Guevarra said the NBI had already submitted its initial findings on the case of Cabling, but he has yet to read it.
“As to the first NBI report, I will go over it when I go to the DOJ tomorrow [Monday],” Guevarra said.
The NBI findings would determine whether charges should be filed against the hospitals, he added.
“If [allegations are] shown to be true, the hospital personnel involved may be charged with violation of Republic Act 8344, An Act Penalizing the Refusal of Hospitals to Administer Initial Medical Treatment in Emergency Cases, as Strengthened by Republic Act 10932,” Guevarra said.
RA 10932 refers to An Act Strengthening the Anti-Hospital Deposit Law by Increasing the Penalties for the Refusal of Hospitals and Medical Clinics to Administer Appropriate Initial Medical Treatment and Support in Emergency or Serious Cases.