THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has directed an Anayara-based private hospital and its anaesthetist to pay up Rs 35 lakh compensation for the alleged medical negligence that caused the death of a man who was admitted for circumcision and correction of abnormal growth of chest.
The deceased Deepak S., 28, of Chirayinkil, an engineer employed at Abu Dhabi, had just gotten engaged and wanted to do minor corrective surgery before marriage.
He was admitted to the hospital on December 9, 2008, and the induction of anaesthesia began at 12.15 pm. A few minutes later he was brain dead and at 12.30 pm the patient suffered a cardiac arrest.
As per the complaint, the brain-dead Deepak was kept in the ICU for four days, while his exact condition remained undisclosed. Later on he was taken off life support after intimating his relatives. His parents were forced to sign a letter opting to avoid post-mortem examination for releasing the body.
With this, Deepak’s parents Sarasan and Suma Sarasan moved the panel through their counsels Chirayankil A. Babu and Narayanan R.
They alleged that there was a delay in supplying oxygen for more than five minutes which resulted in brain damage. Importantly, there was a delay in starting CPR until 12.38 pm.
Hospital officials denied all allegations and contested those experts from various disciplines, and high tech devices were used in the attempts to save the patient who succumbed to severe intractable bronchospasm.
The commission found that anaesthetist floundered in the management of a rare complication that arose. It said that there was a ‘reasonable possibility’ that hospital failed to provide assistance to anaesthetist as the cardiac expert reached only by 12.38 pm.
The deceased, who was the sole breadwinner of the family, was drawing around Rs 1.5 lakh per annum and hence it ordered them to pay Rs 35 lakh as compensation.
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