TWO medics, who were jailed for 12 months each in May last year for manslaughter, have been acquitted following an appeal.
The Bahraini doctors, aged in their 50s, were found guilty of medical negligence and manslaughter by the Lower Criminal Court.
According to court documents, Layla Hassan, also a Bahraini, underwent surgery at the Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC) on June 17 in 2019.
However, due to complications following the surgery and alleged lack of monitoring, she fell into a coma and died two months later, on August 17.
Prosecutors said that the defendants gave orders to transport the patient out of the surgery room before she was fully conscious and while the surgery was ongoing.
However, details of the operation were not provided in case files.
Defence lawyer Abdulrahman Ghunaim, representing the two medics, lodged an appeal at the High Criminal Appeals Court citing lack of evidence.
Lawyer Abdulrahman Ghunaim
Judges yesterday acquitted the defendants.
“The court cannot find the defendants guilty as it does not believe that they were connected with the victim’s death,” read the appeal court ruling.
“In addition, it is not exactly clear what the doctors’ mistake was, and moreover she died two months after the surgery.”
Mr Ghunaim said that a medical panel which examined the case said that it could not find the cause of the woman’s death.
“The head of the medical panel said that there was a lack of oxygen in the body,” he told the judges.
“However, the medical panel said that they did not know what caused her death.
“In addition, it said that she was conscious and her oxygen level was at 100 per cent before she was transported out of the surgery room.”
Two other medics were previously also acquitted due to lack of evidence.
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