Police probe possible medical negligence after newborn dies following delayed transfer at North Jeolla hospital

Police have launched an investigation into allegations that a newborn died at a maternity hospital in North Jeolla Province after failing to receive timely medical care.

Officers recently received a complaint calling for an inquiry into possible medical negligence at the hospital and are now reviewing the case, according to Yonhap News Agency.

The complaint, filed through the government's public petition portal, states that a baby weighing 3.47 kilograms was born Saturday and died after its condition deteriorated rapidly and it was transferred to a higher-level hospital. The parents are asking authorities to determine why the hospital failed to properly inform them of their child's condition and to clarify how the decision to transfer the infant was made.

The parents said the death certificate lists hypoxic respiratory failure as the direct cause of death and perinatal asphyxia as the underlying cause. They said the baby was unable to breathe on its own for five minutes immediately after birth and later developed cyanosis — a bluish discoloration of the skin — after being moved to the neonatal ward. They are asking investigators to determine whether the hospital missed a critical window for intervention.

A North Jeolla Provincial Police Agency official said the serious nature of the case means the violent crimes investigation unit will handle the inquiry directly. Police plan to conduct an autopsy on the infant to establish the precise cause of death and determine whether medical negligence was involved, the official said.