Newborn in China dies after being dragged for metres

A newborn baby in China died after being dragged for nearly a dozen metres by its attached umbilical cord while the mother was being pushed in a wheelchair by a nurse, the hospital confirmed Friday.

The baby girl was born in the hallway of the hospital Jan 2 while the mother, surnamed Shang, was being moved to receive a caesarean at the doctor's insistence, hospital managers with the Women and Children Medical Care Centre of Luoyang city in central China's Henan province, told Xinhua news agency.

Camera surveillance showed the baby hit the ground head-down and was dragged for more than 10 metres before the nurse saw the baby and picked her up.

The left side of the baby's head was swollen with what doctors thought was intracranial hematomas and she died later despite medical efforts.

The doctor strongly recommended the caesarean because Shang had already given birth to her first child 15 years ago in the same manner.

The father, surnamed Pan, said Shang's water broke on the evening of Jan 1 after seven months' pregnancy, but the doctor on the night shift at the hospital advised natural labour after examination that day.

Pan said the baby's death was caused by falling and being dragged and requested a compensation of 200,000 yuan ($32,000), but the hospital, which admitted their negligence and apologised, only agreed to offer 5,000 yuan.

Media reported the case Friday, and the city health department has launched an investigation into whether the hospital should be held responsible for the baby's death.