The victims, including two women, are among the 25 patients who have died of the illness this year.
While campaigners blamed their deaths on the negligence of doctors and acute bed shortages at Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC), the ministry informed families there was no evidence of any wrongdoing.
Bahrain Society for Sickle Cell Anaemia Patient Care chairman Zakareya Ebrahim Al Kadhem yesterday said the ministry was also now refusing to hand over the investigation results to the families on the pretext they were ministry property.
“In all seven cases, the families have been told there was no wrongdoing on the part of doctors and other staff at the SMC,” he told the GDN.
“The ministry has also claimed a bed shortage at the hospital’s intensive care unit was not the reason these patients died.”
Mr Al Kadhem said the families now plan to lodge a protest with Health Minister Dr Faisal Al Hamer in a bid to force him to hand over the files.
“The families want to take the files to other experts outside the hospital for a second opinion and to prepare for court cases,” he said.
“However, they have been told the files will not be given.”
Mr Al Kadhem said the society had discussed the issue with lawyers, who said they can only file a case after they see the files.
“We shall now try and get the files officially after which we may even organise a sit-in at the Accident and Emergency Department,” he said.
Of the 25 people who have died this year, Syed Abdulla Syed Jameel, 24, Mohammed Habib, 40, Ali Jaffer, 32, Ameena Syed Aqeel, 24; Reem Haffadh, 24, Jassim Ali, 25, and Mohammed Dawood, 25, are alleged to have died as a result of negligence.
“We firmly believe these people could have been saved had proper and prompt care been given to them,” said Mr Al Kadhem.
“We have repeatedly asked authorities to augment facilities for such patients but nothing ever happens.
“We sometimes feel doctors have given up on us.”
The latest victim of the disease was father-of-four Abdulrasool Hassan Mohammed Al Shaikh, 47, who died at the SMC on September 7, just days before he was scheduled to leave for Germany to undergo a bone marrow transplant.
The ministry announced in April that the SMC would soon have a new BD2.5 million sickle cell and genetic diseases centre.
It will be part of a host of new facilities, including a critical care unit, modern central pharmacy, an expanded morgue and a police station.
Work has started on the 90-bed centre, which will have its own entrance and exit as well as a dedicated emergency room.
It is due to be finished within two years.
The centre will have a 25-bed emergency room on the ground floor, with wards for children, men and women on the first, second and third floors.
Gulf Daily