Nine months after the medical accident of Ningbo girl child: family members asking why the criminal investigation was still inconclusive

An official assessment can identify a medical accident but cannot substitute for the conclusions of a criminal investigation that are awaited by the family. The incident continued to be controversial, following the death of the baby girl, Little Lohi, in Zhejiang Ningbo, after having undergone a heart surgery in November

1. In February, the Ningbo authorities released the results of the investigation.Medical accident identified as level 1 AThe head of the court is being dealt with. By 24 October, the child ' s family had again made a public statement that the criminal investigation, which lasted several months, had not yet been referred to the Public Prosecutor ' s Office and that civil mediation was no substitute for accountability for critical medical processes.

Lives Watch, 25 October.The family questions how pre-operative diagnosis was established, whether the operating room and the supervision of serious illnesses were available, whether the autopsy report was consistent with the medical records and how the anesthesia and surgical records of the rescue were matched. The need for complete medical records, surveillance, identification reports and investigation services to be verified, in response to specific suspicions about the behaviour of individual doctors, the availability of surgical supplies and the movement of blood, cannot be directly attributed to a proven crime. It is precisely because of the death of an infant that the factual criteria cannot be determined by cybermoderation.

Nor can this be a reason why authorities do not explain it. Since the level of the accident has been formalized, it is the responsibility of the authorities concerned to indicate the steps taken in the administrative liability, civil compensation, medical damage assessment and criminal investigation, respectively. Families should not be repeatedly separated between hospitals, health departments and public security organs, if they request information about the preservation of medical records and evidence that can be made public in accordance with the law. Delays themselves can drain witness memory, erode social trust and may make it more difficult to identify complex medical causalities.

China ' s public health system centralizes supervision, management and personnel management. The local party committees, which are under pressure to maintain the reputation of the hospital and public order, and are accountable for hospital accidents, can easily create a public border of interests and responsibilities that is difficult to penetrate. Under the Xi Jinping Government system, which emphasizes the efficiency of governance, it is not the speed of issuing an accident notification that is really measured, but rather the ability to provide the family with a clear and monitorable path to appeal.

The Ningbo authorities should make public the rules of evidence handling that do not involve the privacy of the patient, the current stage of criminal proceedings and the significant time points, and allow independent qualified professionals to examine medical records. For families, compensation can address some of the practical difficulties, but cannot substitute for a full explanation of the child ' s last hours. After a young life has been lost, the last thing the Government should ask for is silence without a deadline for reply.