No conclusion yet in death of baby on bus - Health D-G

KUCHING: The Health Ministry is still unable to make any conclusion regarding a recent case involving a three-month-old baby who died while on a six-hour bus journey with his mother from Kuching to Sarikei.

Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said they would still need to find the baby's parents to get the baby's full medical history to pursue the investigation.

"This is very unique, so we are investigating the case. We are not able to find the parents yet, JKNS (Sarawak Health Department) is investigating the case, to find the details before we can make any conclusion," he told reporters at the sideline of the Academy for Silent Mentor (AFSM) Tripartite Conference 2022 here today.

On Dec 9, JKNS issued a statement regarding the incident that occurred on Dec 4, which went viral on social media.

According to the statement, the mother had noticed that her child had ceased breathing when the bus made a stop at Jelukong bus terminal, Sri Aman, about 208 kilometres (km) from here.

The infant was then taken to the Betong Hospital, about 28 km away and was pronounced dead.

Physical and radiology checks were conducted on the baby however no post-mortem examinations were carried out following discussions between the hospital authority, police, and the victim's family members.

The family then took the body home to be buried at the Ulu Pakan cemetery in Sarikei.

-- BERNAMA