Munger: This is Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Bihar, brother! Where the government health system has reached its death stage for 15 years. The health system of private hospitals has become shameless for money. Not us but you can also say this about the Commission’s order that came out from Munger in Bihar. The District Consumer Protection and Redressal Commission has informed about Dr. Sudhir Kumar, a renowned surgeon of the city. The report that came out called him a doctor who looted money by trading the lives of the poor.
Actually, the whole matter is that the teenager along with his family members had reached their hospital for treatment on a simple complaint of stomach ache. Where they made an incision in the entire stomach and also tried to take the boy’s life through wrong surgery. After a long legal battle of seven years, the victim’s family finally got justice.
Actually, the whole matter is related to the son of Samar Shekhar, resident of Jamalpur Sadar Bazar Dharamshala Road. According to the court report, on August 1, 2019, the teenager complained of severe stomach pain. The family took him to Dr. Sudhir Kumar’s clinic for treatment. After examination, the surgeon suspected appendicitis and performed laparoscopic surgery the very next day. But this claimed appendix operation was unsuccessful. It was also not confirmed whether there was an appendix or not. It is further alleged that after this the doctor suddenly made a big incision in the entire stomach of the teenager without taking the consent of the parents. Five days passed, but the child’s condition did not improve. On the contrary, pain and fever increased. When the family members put pressure on the doctor, he hurriedly collected the bill and referred the patient. The family took the child to a private hospital in Bhagalpur, where the doctors said that the first surgery had gone wrong and treatment was not possible here.
After getting the answer in Bhagalpur, the family members quickly took him to Kolkata. The expert doctors there told that the first surgery was so wrong that there was a hole in the child’s intestine and part of the appendix was not removed properly. The child’s life was somehow saved by performing a second operation in Kolkata. The family spent more than Rs 8 lakh on this serious treatment. After this, the victim’s family filed a suit in the Consumer Commission on 28 November 2019.
The commission said – this was not a medical experiment, it was like an inhuman experiment.
While hearing the case, Commission Chairman Raman Kumar Sindh put the doctor in the dock. The Commission said that carrying out the operation only on the basis of impression without doing necessary investigation shows that the doctor was experimenting on the patient. This behavior is inhuman. The commission ordered the doctor to return Rs 8.50 lakh spent on the treatment along with six percent interest. Give Rs 2 lakh for physical and mental pain. Paid Rs 50 thousand as litigation expenses. A compensation of Rs 5 lakh should be given for “dissecting and mutilating” the child’s body like a fest mortem. Overall the doctor will have to pay Rs 16.51 lakh. If the amount is not given within the stipulated time, 9% annual interest will also have to be paid.
Doctor’s clarification, there was suspicion of perforation, hence the stomach was opened
Dr. Sudhir Kumar said in his written explanation that the stomach was opened when appendix perforation was detected. He claims that there was a accumulation of quinous flakes on the intestine and a fix-like fluid around the appendix. He also admitted that the hole in the intestine was closed in the operation conducted in Kolkata. The remaining part of the appendix was removed. He also tried to mislead the commission in medical language.
Got justice after 7 years, family heaved a sigh of relief
After this decision, the victim’s family said that this fight was not easy, but now the confidence has increased that justice is provided in cases of medical negligence. The Commission’s decision has also sent a message that wrong surgery or negligence will now cost the doctors dearly.
