KOCHI: With multiple complaints of medical negligence leading to patient fatalities surfacing, the Government Medical College Hospital (MCH), Kalamassery, has come under immense public scrutiny. The deaths of Covid patients at the hospital have brought back memory of the events that had occurred in 2016 and 2017. Several families who had lost their loved ones while undergoing treatment at the MCH are demanding accountability on the part of the hospital.
Fifty-nine-year-old Baihakki, who died on July 24, was admitted to the MCH on July 8 for Covid treatment. His relatives claim that he had mentioned in voice messages that he was not getting proper attention and care from the staff. “We were not in a position to see him or the doctor treating him, since direct communication was not possible due to the Covid situation. Whenever we enquired with the doctors and staff about his condition, they always reassured us that he was stable,” said Nisthar K A, Baihaaki’s elder brother.
“We had even thought of shifting him from the hospital to ensure better facilities, but at that time, we were unable to do so,” said Nisthar. “Now that Dr Najma Salim has openly stated that the allegations of medical negligence raised by a nurse in a voice clip are true, our suspicion has been corroborated. My brother died due to negligence,” he added.
Long before the pandemic reached our shores, the deaths of Shamna Thasneem in 2016 and Jerin Michael in 2017, while under treatment at the MCH, had led to allegations of lapses on the part of the hospital. Shamna, a second-year student at the MCH, died on July 18, 2016, due to severe allergic reaction to an injection which was administered by the doctors who were her teachers at the Medical College.
A few months later, Jerin, a 25-year-old Thevakkal native, died allegedly due to denial of medical care at the MCH. Jerin was taken to the hospital on March 25, 2017, with severe stomachache. The treatment was delayed as the chief surgeon was not available that day. Relatives recount their horrible experience when his health condition worsened -- he had to be wrapped in a bedsheet and carried to the ICU as the lift was not working. By the time they reached the ICU, it was too late. The family had accused the hospital of denying proper medical care.
“As far as the Ernakulam MCH is concerned, this is not the first time an incident of medical negligence has been reported. An expert committee should review the situation here, and medical staff who are committed to their duty and betterment of the institution should be appointed,” said Dr Sanil Kumar, member of V R Krishna Iyer Movement, which has been campaigning for establishing the Cochin Cancer Research Centre and multi-speciality facilities at the MCH.