JEDDAH — An anesthetist who was allegedly on the run after being implicated in the death of a child at the closed Dr. Erfan and Bagedo General Hospital in Jeddah has said he has not fled the Kingdom but was on a planned holiday in his home country to visit his family. Dr. Khaled Mustafa denied responsibility over the death of eight-year-old Salah Al-Deen Yusuf Jameel and said the company that was responsible for replacing the gas cylinders put the oxygen cylinders in the wrong place. He said he did not administer any gas to the victim, but used intravenous medicines only. Dr. Mustafa told Okaz/Saudi Gazette over the phone that the gas company was not responsible for what happened to the boy, but blamed the operation and maintenance company. It is responsible for transporting the gas cylinders from the company to the hospital as well as connecting the cylinders inside medical rooms, he added. Hospital director Dr. Muhammad Erfan also blamed the same company. A source at the Machinery and Gases Company that provided the gas cylinders and was initially held responsible for causing the boy's death told Okaz/Saudi Gazette the company was not responsible in any way. He added the company is only responsible for handing over the gas to the hospital's warehouse and has nothing to do with connecting the gas to the outlets. The source said the gas given to the boy was not nitrogen as reported in the media but nitrous oxide, which is used in anesthesia but in controlled doses. The source added the cylinders are color-coded according to the type of gas they hold to allow hospital staff to differentiate between them.
