Hyderabad: The Hyderabad District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-1 has ordered Vitality Health Services in Secunderabad and three of its doctors to pay Rs 10 lakh as compensation to the family of a 38-year-old woman who died following a hysterectomy surgery in August 2021. The commission found them guilty of medical negligence and deficiency in service for performing a major surgery without basic critical care facilities like a ventilator.
The commission observed that the hospital and its doctors failed on many counts. They conducted a major surgery without having a mechanical ventilator to support the patient post-operation.
When the patient developed hypoxia, a dangerous condition caused by a lack of oxygen, and stopped breathing soon after surgery, the hospital could not provide immediate ventilator support. It also observed that the hospital lacked a fully-equipped ambulance and had no ramp or proper lift to shift the patients on a stretcher.
The hospital decided to move the patient to another hospital in Ameerpet using a self-assisting breathing device. By the time she reached the second hospital, her condition had worsened. She was placed on a ventilator at the second hospital but died the next day due to cardiac arrest.
A complaint was filed by the deceased’s husband, K. Ravi Kumar, alleging medical negligence. According to the complaint, immediately after the surgery, the doctors informed him that his wife had suffered a stroke and was not breathing.
They suggested shifting her to another hospital, which was farther than other super-speciality hospitals. The complainant argued that the operating doctors were not gynaecologists, and the hospital did not have the required infrastructure and equipment for such a major surgery.
The consumer commission relied heavily on reports from the district medical and health officer (DMHO) and expert opinions from Gandhi Hospital doctors. Expert medical opinions confirmed a delayed recovery from anaesthesia had likely led to the respiratory failure. However, no neurological cause of death was found. It was also found that the hospital had allowed doctors not listed in its official records to perform surgeries.
The consumer forum also applied the principle of ‘res ipsa loquitur (the thing speaks for itself)’, stating that the circumstances clearly pointed to negligence.
A complaint against the second hospital was dismissed, as no lapses were found in its treatment. The family had also approached the police and the DMHO soon after the incident and later filed a writ petition in the Telangana High Court when they felt the inquiries were going nowhere. The High Court questioned the non-availability of a ventilator and the administration of anaesthesia, while the commission noted that there was no record of these queries being answered.
Hospital officials were also ordered to pay Rs 50,000 towards legal costs and were given 45 days to comply with the order, failing which the compensation amount will attract an interest of six per cent per annum.