Newborn Gang case: 112 records are neither in the indictment nor in the ATK report

Source: News Center

The report prepared by the Forensic Medicine Institute (ATK) regarding the 5-month-old Nigerian baby Michelle Nwando Opara, who allegedly died as a result of the negligence of the “ Newborn Gang ,” once again revealed that the 112 records were not included in the indictment.

Baby Opara, who was brought to Private Medilife Hospital in Beylikdüzü, Istanbul, with respiratory complaints on January 14, 2024, was diagnosed with pneumonia according to the ATK report.

According to the 112 records entered into the case file, a referral request was made after baby Opara's condition worsened, citing a lack of pediatric intensive care at the hospital. However, the referral was not made due to a lack of space at other hospitals in Istanbul. From January 14, 2024, when baby Opara was brought to the hospital, a request for pediatric intensive care was made on January 15, 16, and 17, 2024. While referral requests continued at regular intervals, due to the lack of pediatric intensive care at the hospital, baby Opara was transferred to Özel Birinci Hospital, which has larger incubators. She remained in the neonatal intensive care unit there until her transfer was approved.

However, during three days of meetings with approximately 70 public and private hospitals, transfer requests were rejected due to claims of "lack of space." According to audio recordings included in the case file, during calls between the hospital and 112, a nurse on duty stated that the patient needed to be "admitted to urgent intensive care," but this request was not met.

The ATK report noted that the transfer of the Opara baby from Medilife Private Hospital to Birinci Private Hospital, due to the lack of space at other hospitals, constituted a "bypassing of the 112 referral system." The report stated: "112 searched for a place in the pediatric intensive care unit but found no space. The transfer should have been made by 112. Because the search was not completed, Dr. Fırat Sarı was contacted before the search was completed. The baby was admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit instead of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, admitted under inappropriate conditions, and the initiation of treatment was contrary to medical principles..."

Meanwhile, the ATK report noted that the treatment, diagnosis, and follow-up procedures for baby Opara at Özel Birinci Hospital, where he was diagnosed with pneumonia, were not conducted in accordance with medical principles. The report also stated that the practices of Doctors Şeyhmus Çelik and Fırat Sarı, as well as the intensive care nurse responsible, Hakan Doğukan Taşçı, were not in accordance with medical principles.