COMMENT: More questions as SGH closes case on Hep C mess

The windows of wards are seen with the sign of Singapore General Hospital on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2015 in Singapore. (AP Photo/Joseph Nair)

The Singapore General Hospital and the Ministry of Health had a great opportunity to save face over their handling of the Hepatitis C mess.

Alas, it was not to be. The press statements they issued didn’t name those responsible and gave vague terms like “warnings, stern warnings and financial penalties” for the punishments imposed. So much for transparency!

Even The Straits Times couldn’t stomach it. Its senior health correspondent, Salma Khalik, concluded in an unusually strong and blunt commentary: “If people are left with the impression that doctors and ministry officials get special protection no matter what they do, then confidence in the system will be badly eroded.” Ouch!

The newspaper knows fully well how touchy the government is about the issue, which saw eight people die because of a string of lapses at the hospital.

Not long ago, the ministry attacked another ST journalist for being “irresponsible” in insinuating that it had improper motives when she questioned why it took 15 days for the Director of Medical Services to report the outbreak to the minister.

The independent review committee that was asked to look into the humiliating tragedy listed flaws that would fit a Third World hospital. Poor infection control practices, tardy attitudes in recognising the outbreak, incomplete investigations and a delay in escalating the incident.

Even worse, the team found a spot of blood on the wall in the preparation room that contained the Hepatitis C virus.

And this after the outbreak became national news in early October, six months after the first case of the Hepatitis C virus was found in a patient. It then spread like wild fire affecting more than 22 patients.
The discovery of that spot of blood after the review team went in was that one moment that should have called for a full disclosure of what really went wrong at a hospital that prides itself in being “Singapore’s flagship tertiary hospital with a history and traditional of medical excellence spanningtwo centuries”.
It pointed to not just a systemic failure at our pioneer hospital but a total disregard for taking corrective measures.
The press statements left many questions unanswered. Why was the ministry informed only in late August when the infected patients were diagnosed between April and June? Why was the public told only in early October?
Even though the ministry’s Director of Medical Services was absolved of blame, the 15 days it took him to inform the Minister is baffling. Yes, he wanted answers to some important questions…but when eight deaths have happened isn’t it prudent to press the panic button and inform the big bossimmediately?
These questions go to the heart of a matter in a country that tries to drown out voices that push for more disclosure. And let’s not forget that eight lives were lost because of the gaps in infection control and the tardy responses by those involved.
The least that the SGH and the ministry can do is to bring about closure to an issue that has dented their image and broken the hearts of the relatives of the dead patients.

P N Balji is a veteran Singaporean journalist who is the former chief editor of TODAY newspaper, and a media consultant. The views expressed are his own.