A young woman and mother of two, Shailaja has been reduced to a completely vegetative state reportedly because of an anaesthesia overdose she underwent while in for a surgery. Today, she cannot eat, speak or move. She is completely immobile, all because her family say an overdose of anaesthesia. What should happen in such cases of medical negligence? Dr R Ramnarayan, a top neurosurgeon who has offered his help to Shailaja joined IBNLive readers for an interaction on the issue.
Q. A medical mistake may cost a life.This can be a negligence from the doctor or an Ignorance of the doctor.Do you link this with the education system of our country wherein anybody can become anything with a proper financial set-up? Asked by: deepak krishnamurthy
A. Unfortunately yes. Quality suffers when merit is given the go by.
Q. What should happen in cases of medical negligence like Shailaja? Asked by: sudesh
A. A proper enquiry and appropriate deterrent punishments.
Q. Are hospitals getting away with life threatening medical negligence? Asked by: Shikha
A. Not all hospitals but there are some. The best way is to ensure that proper records are maintained.
Q. I am telling this. these hospitals are running medical tourism, nothing else. they deliberately do not provide anaethesia in one go coz they charge every time they provide the same. i just say one thing to doctors. you are born in India which is a developing country and its not US or Switzerland. This is your destiny. If doctors and hospitals think that they have worked hard and should be paid exorbitantly, its better they should try for a well paid job in US or Europe where at least insurance covers the patients. Instead of ruining financially to bottom the innocent patients family. I have seen this in my Father's and my Mother's case. And at the end, they fail to even save them also. Asked by: pc
A. I can understand your emotions but I think you should not club all doctors and hospitals. Moreover doctors are also human beings and cannot cure every disease under the sun.
Q. Under the current laws, what recourse can a family take in case of medical negligence? Asked by: Swastik
A. As the lawyer in yesterday's debate said, he can approach various consumer courts.
Q. How do you prove a clinical negligence case? Asked by: Pawan
A. By examining the case records and comparing with best practices and evidence base. This is done by experts in the specialty.
Q. What should I do if I think I may have a medical, hospital or nursing home malpractice case? Asked by: Isha
A. Go to the regional consumer court and put up your case.
Q. Is there any discussion within the medical practitioners' community about the need to fix accountability? Asked by: Ritika Deshpande
A. Yes, and I am sure the MCI also will act soon
Q. How long will it take for the case to settle? Asked by: mugdha
A. I do not know but depends on many factors.
Q. Does the doctor pay personally? Asked by: Farhan
A. No we have insurance cover for which we pay annual premiums.
Q. How much does it cost to hire a lawyer to represent me or my family in a medical, hospital or nursing home negligence case? Asked by: leena
A. I do not know, you will need to ask a lawyer.
Q. What compensation does the law provide for those who have been injured by medical, hospital or nursing home negligence? Asked by: gaurav
A. I think it is taken up on a case to case basis.
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