Mumbai: Payout hiked to Rs 20 lakh for family of woman who died during childbirth

MUMBAI: “We understand how challenging and painful a Mother’s Day is without mom,” said National Consumer Redressal Commission on November 11 as it enhanced to Rs 20 lakh compensation to the family of a woman with rare blood group who had died over 25 years ago during childbirth. It said there was unexplained delay in giving better medical care and she died due to the doctor’s negligence.

Justice R.K. Agrawal (president) and Dr S M Kantikar (commission member) dismissed an appeal by a Nallasopara hospital and doctor who runs it, challenging a February 2015 state commission order which held them liable for medical negligence. The state commission had directed them to pay Rs 16 lakh to the widower and his two daughters but the hospital had challenged it.

Quoting Susan Wiggs, National Commission said, “There is something about losing a mother that is permanent and inexpressible a wound that will never quite heal.”

On September 20, 1995, at 5.30am, the woman started bleeding and at 6.30am a lower segment caesarean section was performed after consent from her husband, and at 9.30am her second daughter was born. The hospital asked for blood bottles and four were organized by 10.30am. Due to anxiety, the co-brother of the complainant husband , Dr. Ram Barot, contacted a gynaecologist who phoned the Nallasopara doctor, asking him to shift her to Bhagwati hospital for an emergency hysterectomy to save her life.

Dr Barot organized 18 bottles of her blood type. The National Commission order said after alleged refusal she was finally shifted at 4.30pm, when she was declared dead before admission.

“It was an act of omission from the (doctor) wherein it fell below that of the standards of a reasonably competent practitioner in his field,” said the National Commission. Their advocate, Anand Patwardhan, argued that there was no medical negligence.

But consumer activist Shirish Deshpande as authorised representative for the widower and daughters said she was shifted to Bhagwati belatedly and died due to “hemorrhagic shock following surgery” as mentioned in her post-mortem. He submitted a medical expert opinion that since it was her second delivery with a rare A- blood type, the hospital should have kept her blood type available, as there were chances of unexpected uncontrolled haemorrhage.

The commission directed the hospital and doctor to pay Rs 1 lakh as litigation cost too.