A shocking case surfaced in which a woman was left with a needle in her uterus after delivery. The Delhi State Consumer Redressal Commission has asked the Delhi private hospital to pay Rs 30 lakh for their deficient and irresponsible service. The Commission upheld the district forum’s order asking Shree Jeewan Hospital was asked to compensate the North-East Delhi resident Rubina. It was also noted that instead of deploying a qualified doctor, the hospital used a pharmacist to get the job done.
“Instead of employing a qualified doctor who draws a salary of around Rs two lakhs, the hospital is getting the job done by a pharmacist. How many such episiotomy wounds have been stitched by ... (pharmacist) is anybody’s guess,” the bench headed by member N P Kaushik said.
“The appeal preferred by the hospital is dismissed. The hospital is burdened with costs of Rs 30 lakh for being ‘negligent’ and ‘deficient in service’. The said costs shall be deposited by the hospital in Consumer Welfare Fund of the State maintained by this Commission,” it said
The hospital even tried to manipulate the records to cover up the fact that the delivery was performed by a doctor who’s not qualified enough to do the surgery.
“Hospital has gone to the extent of manipulating the records to make believe that it was a doctor and nurse who conducted the delivery,” the bench said.
What actually happened:
Rubina, a north-east Delhi resident was admitted to Shree Jeewan Hospital on September 15, 2009 for delivery, where she gave birth to a girl child. While conducting the surgery, the doctors left a needle in her uterus which led to extreme bleeding and pain. On complaining, the doctors did not pay any attention to her problem. When an X-ray was conducted, a needle was found in her uterus. The needle was removed in the same hospital.
The woman also underwent an ultrasound in November 2009. It revealed that her uterus has retroflexed and she’ll never be able to conceive again. Rubina then filed a complaint against the hospital in police and consumer forum.
The district forum had asked the hospital to pay the compensation amounting to Rs. 30 lakh to Rubina.
