Parents of Baby Left Brain Damaged After Gas Mix-up at Hospital Speak Out

The parents of a baby girl left brain damaged after gas mix-up at hospital have spoken of their heartache for the first time since the incident.

Danial and Benish Khan have shared their devastation when their newborn daughter, Ameila, suffered irreversible brain damage when she was given nitrous oxide instead of oxygen after her birth in June at Bankstown-Lidcombe Hospital.

Since the mix-up, Amelia suffers frequent seizures, and will require intensive long-term care.

“She will always have to live with the consequences of what was done to her at the hospital.

“But we will always be by her side and we’ll do everything we can to give her the best possible future.

“We can only imagine the intense pain this family is going through and our hearts go out to them,” the parents told the Sydney Morning Herald.

Another baby, John Ghanem, died in July when he was also given the wrong gas.

Parents Sonya and Youseff Ghanem left hospital after the death of their son and found out after a few weeks that their baby’s tragic death was due to a hospital gas mix-up.

Sonya said she asked to see her son at the said hospital after a cesarean section but staff told her the little boy was dead. “I’m just feeling very hurt. Very hurt with all of this. They said ‘Your baby didn’t make it. Your baby had died’,” she said.

The mix-up went unnoticed until a paediatrician raised the alarm and the two babies were already administered the incorrect gas.

NSW Health Minister Jillian Skinner has been questioned over her handling of the gas scandal.

NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant released the final report found “a series of tragic errors” including incorrect installations of gas pipelines, flawed testings and significant clinical and management failures caused the deadly error. She said she hoped it would give the families of the two babies some answers.

The report found that South West Sydney Local Health District, and BOC Ltd which installed the medical gas piping, failed to comply with Australian standards.

A general manager of the hospital was suspended following investigations, and also an engineer at the hospital earlier in the month.

Further interviews are taking place in relation to the investigation.

Sources: Au.news.yahoo.com and Dailymail.co.uk