PESHAWAR: Another medical negligence case has emerged at Khyber Teaching Hospital, the second-largest hospital in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. A towel was left inside a patient’s abdomen following a delivery procedure.
The incident occurred on June 26 when Zara Bibi, a nurse at the Peshawar Institute of Cardiology (PIC) and a resident of Chitral, underwent a delivery operation at Khyber Teaching Hospital. Zara Bibi’s husband, Akbar Ali, reported that after two days in the hospital, they were discharged and returned home.
However, Zara Bibi soon began experiencing severe abdominal pain and fever. When they contacted the gynecology ward, they were told that such symptoms were normal post-delivery and would subside with medication.
On July 1, as Zara Bibi’s pain worsened, Akbar Ali took her to the emergency room at Khyber Teaching Hospital. Despite undergoing X-rays and ultrasounds, the gynecology ward declared her clear and sent her home.
When they returned to the hospital on July 4 to have her stitches removed, the pain persisted. Despite expressing their concerns, they were reassured and allowed to return to their village in Chitral. The pain continued, and on July 6, Zara Bibi was taken to the Peshawar Institute of Cardiology instead of Khyber Teaching Hospital. There, tests, including ultrasounds, revealed fluid in her lungs. Informing the gynecology ward at KTH, they were referred to a chest specialist.
Zara Bibi’s pain persisted, and on July 8, she was admitted to the surgical ward at KTH. Although X-rays, ultrasounds, and CT scans were performed, the hospital refused to conduct them in-house, instead sending them to an external facility. These tests revealed an object in her abdomen. On July 9, a second surgery was performed, and the towel was removed from Zara Bibi’s abdomen. She remains hospitalized.
Akbar Ali accused the hospital of medical negligence and questioned the reliability of their tests, as multiple in-house tests came back clear while private tests revealed the problem.
Provincial Health Minister Qasim Ali Shah has taken notice of the incident and has indicated that action will be taken against those responsible.
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