Mumbai doctor, hospital asked to pay kin over Rs 12 lakh for medical negligence

MUMBAI: Fifteen years after a 66-year-old woman died due to excessive use of anesthetics following a surgery for a fractured forearm, Parel Hospital and an orthopaedic surgeon will have to pay the family over Rs 12 lakh in compensation along with interest.

Upholding a state commission order from 2018, the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) said that though negligence was attributable to the anaesthesiologist, the hospital would not be absolved of the 'vicarious' liability.

"Moreover, in the instant case, the 'captain of the ship' was the orthopaedic surgeon. Before proceeding to surgery, he was supposed to be careful to ascertain proper pre-anesthetic check-up and fitness..., but it was lacking in the instant case," the commission said.

Incidentally, the expert committee report from department of traumatology and orthopaedic surgery of Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals had opined that there was no medical negligence on the part of operating surgeon, Dr Ajay Rathod.

The national commission, however, referred to the opinion of one of the experts, a neurosurgeon, who said that as a certain parameter was low, it should have been built up before surgery and pre-anaesthetic fitness should have been recorded. "It was the valid point that the other experts have not commented on this point. As there was no recovery from anaesthesia after the operation, in my view, the pre- and post-operative care was certainly doubtful in the instant case," the commission said.

Uma Nikam, the daughter of the patient, Kusum Memane, submitted in her complaint that on June 20, 2008, her mother sustained the fracture. Her complaint said that the following day, she was operated by Dr Rathore at Parel Hospital.

It was submitted that the anaesthetist was Dr Mulji Gada, who has since died. It was alleged that the operation was conducted in the morning, but the patient did not regain consciousness due to excessive anesthesia. Her condition worsened, she was intubated and put on a ventilator. Later she was shifted to another hospital, where without regaining consciousness, she died on October 24, 2008.

Being aggrieved, the patient's daughter filed a complaint before the District Forum, Central Mumbai. The District Forum dismissed the complaint.

Nikam then moved the state consumer commission in 2015. In 2018, it ruled in her favour and ordered the compensation. In 2019 the doctor and the hospital filed appeals before the national consumer commission. The doctor and the hospital denied any negligence.

The national consumer commission said, "It is pertinent to note that the anaesthesiologist did not even read the reports of investigations of the patient and relied on telephonic communication by OP-1 (Rathod) given fitness for anaesthesia. After the surgery, the patient did not come out of anesthesia.The patient was in a vegetative state for next four months and died..," the national consumer commission said.