Hong Kong finding against N.Z. doctor

Press, 17 November 1981, Page 27

Hong Kong finding against N.Z. doctor

NZPA staff correspondent Hong Kong Hong Kong hospitals are being directed to conduct both oral and written re- ’ views of all emergency procedures before assigning medical staff to their emergency departments, after an inquest into the death from head injuries of a boy, aged 'lO, earlier this year. A coroner’s jury of three has held a New Zealand doctor criminally responsible for the boy’s death when returning a verdict of manslaughter. The doctor, David F. C. '■ Mason, was described to the Coroner (Mr John Hansen) as

a “transient employee” at the emergency department of Hong Kong’s United Christian Hospital when Mak Chifai was brought to the casualty ward on January 12 after a fall at school. No “physical findings” were recorded and Mak was sent home with medication after being examined by Dr Mason. The boy’s father brought him back to the hospital next day, and further tests and Xrays revealed a fractured skull. A haematoma (blood clot) said to be the size of a cricket ball was subsequently removed from Mak’s head, but he went into a post-

operative coma and died on January 20. “We are establishing his whereabouts in the United Kingdom and are asking the legal department to clarify our legal standing in that country,” said a police spokesman. “We cannot do anything at the moment until we hear from them.” The legal department had asked for a copy of the Coroner’s report. The Coroner’s jury recommended a thorough review of emergency procedures at hospitals, and a spokesman for the medical and health department has said it would be carried out.