Baby Yok Shan turns one - and learns to cope

from today's the Star
KLANG: Baby Lai Yok Shan cuts a pretty picture in her frilly frock as she cuddles up to her mother Nut Tuemthong.

Yok Shan, who celebrated her first birthday, looks every inch a regular, happy and bubbly baby – until one gets a glimpse of her left arm which is just a stub.

(She was born on July 23 but it was her birthday yesterday according to the Chinese Lunar calendar.)

Yok Shan lost her left arm when it turned gangrenous and dropped off after a houseman at the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital (HTAR) inserted an intravenous needle into a muscle instead of a blood vessel when the premature baby was placed in an incubator.

Her father, mechanic Lai Kian Khee, 25, said Yok Shan does show her frustration when she cannot play with some of her toys.

“She also cries when she is unable to roll over or crawl,” said Lai.

However, Yok Shan has managed to adapt and moves on her buttocks to get around, he added.

Although all appears well for the baby and her parents, the issue of her compensation from the Government is still uncertain.

“We want to end this amicably and hope the Government will come to a just and fair quantum of compensation,” said Lai.

The Government accepted responsibility for the mishap and had offered an ex-gratia payment of RM60,000 to Yok Shan’s parents, who turned it down as they felt the amount did not do justice to Yok Shan’s suffering.

“We don’t want to prolong the issue as we’ve been told that it (a court case) may take years and we are afraid that it may effect Yok Shan emotionally as she grows up,” said Lai.

Author's review - Yes, u saw them smiling, in her heart only God knows..and I bet there is a person with heartless who can tell her 'you should be thankful that your daughter has no severe congenital problems or hole-in-heart'...It is not about not being thankful or not, but we have story to tell where others should be more coutious and carefull; being the parents or the doctors..I experienced where a trainee doctor can't find Dania's blood vessel for more than an hour when she was at NICU. Knowing a lioness mother fiercely waiting outside the treatment room, he gave up and asked the staff nurse to help.Not to condemn but there are always room for improvement or 'Kaizen'.Trainee should not be allowed to treat premature babies like Yok Shan and Dania.