Newborn dropped on the floor at Swedish hospital
A prematurely born baby boy was dropped on the floor by staff at the Skåne University Hospital in Malmö on Monday, in a neonatal unit which was understaffed at the time.
The newborn, which had been born ten weeks early, was on his way to have his lung x-rayed when the incident took place, the local Sydsvenskan newspaper reported.
Hospital staff were in the process of placing an x-ray plate under the infant when he suddenly tumbled to the floor.
"They lifted up the boy and somehow dropped him on the floor. I don't know if he slid out of their hands or fell off the bed. But he fell on the floor and screamed," clinic head Elisabeth Olhager told the paper.
The little boy's parents were left in a state of shock over the boy's fall.
"The parents are understandably very concerned and devastated," said Olhager, who added that staff members who witnessed the fall were also deeply troubled by the incident.
Despite the shocking fall, the newborn reportedly came through the incident without injury.
However, he is expected to undergo further scans to ensure that he didn't receive any skull fractures as a result of the fall to the floor.
Meanwhile, Olhager told Sydsvenskan that the hospital is taking the incident "very seriously" and plans to launch an investigation.
At the time of the boy's fall, the neonatal unit was overcrowded and understaffed, but Olhager refused to speculate on whether or not those circumstances contributed to the incident.
Just a few weeks ago, the unit came in for criticism from Sweden's National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) for poor hygiene and staffing practices.
TT/The Local/dl
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The newborn, which had been born ten weeks early, was on his way to have his lung x-rayed when the incident took place, the local Sydsvenskan newspaper reported.
Hospital staff were in the process of placing an x-ray plate under the infant when he suddenly tumbled to the floor.
"They lifted up the boy and somehow dropped him on the floor. I don't know if he slid out of their hands or fell off the bed. But he fell on the floor and screamed," clinic head Elisabeth Olhager told the paper.
The little boy's parents were left in a state of shock over the boy's fall.
"The parents are understandably very concerned and devastated," said Olhager, who added that staff members who witnessed the fall were also deeply troubled by the incident.
Despite the shocking fall, the newborn reportedly came through the incident without injury.
However, he is expected to undergo further scans to ensure that he didn't receive any skull fractures as a result of the fall to the floor.
Meanwhile, Olhager told Sydsvenskan that the hospital is taking the incident "very seriously" and plans to launch an investigation.
At the time of the boy's fall, the neonatal unit was overcrowded and understaffed, but Olhager refused to speculate on whether or not those circumstances contributed to the incident.
Just a few weeks ago, the unit came in for criticism from Sweden's National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) for poor hygiene and staffing practices.
TT/The Local/dl
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