Hong Kong Buddhist Hospital announces sentinel event
The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:
The spokesperson for Hong Kong Buddhist Hospital (HKBH) announced a sentinel event today (December 2):
An 83-year-old male patient was admitted to a medicine and geriatrics ward of HKBH on November 29 due to end-stage renal failure and pneumonia. The patient's clinical condition was stable all along.
A healthcare staff inspected the ward at 1.20am today, the patient was asleep and no abnormality observed. Fifteen minutes later, the patient was found unconscious with his neck got entangled by the connection tubing of a blood pressure machine. Healthcare staff removed the connection tubing and performed resuscitation immediately. The hospital also informed the patient's family. The patient was certified dead at 2.47am.
The hospital is saddened by the incident and expressed deep condolences to the patient's family. It will provide assistance to the family as required. The hospital reported the incident to the Police for follow-up and will fully co-operate with the Police for investigation. The incident will also be reported to the coroner for follow-up.
HKBH is very concerned about the incident, which has been reported to the Hospital Authority Head Office through the Advance Incident Reporting System. The hospital has promptly reviewed the ward, arranged the positions of the related medical equipment and enhanced inspection, so as to avoid the reoccurrence of similar incidents.