Zara inquest: Trauma team prioritised saving her life, did not alert police, says doctor

KOTA KINABALU: The trauma team prioritised saving the life of the late Zara Qairina Mahathir upon her arrival at Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), said witness Dr Janefer Voo.

Testifying before the Coroner’s Court today, the emergency and trauma medical officer at QEH said the 13-year-old arrived in critical condition in the early hours of July 16.

“We did not call the police as she was in critical condition, (furthermore) additional information from the medical staff could not ascertain the mechanism of the incident (of how the injuries happened).

“In this case, our priority is to stabilise the patient,” she told the Coroner’s court following questions by Rizwandean M. Borhan, who is representing Zara’s family, during the fourth day of the inquest into Zara’s death.

Dr Voo also testified that there were no police officers present when the girl was brought in. Her mother, Noraidah Lamat was also not present at that time.

When asked by Datuk Ram Singh whether she was aware that Zara’s clothing should have been handed over to the police or used for forensic analysis, Dr Voo responded that it did not occur to her at the time.

“At that particular time, I was resuscitating the patient, so once the clothing was removed, it was kept in a bag by our staff.

“Regarding surrendering the clothing to police or for forensic purposes, at that time, it didn’t cross my mind, my priority was to make the patient stable,” she said, adding that she could not recall the specifics of Zara’s clothing but noted that her headscarf (tudung) was not present, as her head had been bandaged.

Dr Voo, who has five years of experience in the Emergency and Trauma Unit, also said she did not refer Zara to the One Stop Crisis Centre (OSCC) for the same reason, as the focus was on life-saving efforts.

Earlier, in response to questions from Nurul Rafeeqa Afdul Mutolip, Dr Voo explained that OSCC is typically used for cases involving child abuse, bullying, and rape.

Both Ram Singh and Nurul Rafeeqa are counsels representing Zara’s family members.

© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd

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