Madras HC asks hospital to treat 8-year-old girl suffering from brain ailment caused due to negligence

The Madras High Court Bench here has directed the Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) Dean here to form a team of specialists to treat an eight-year old girl suffering from a brain ailment which she contracted due to alleged medical negligence of doctors at a government hosital in Aruppukottai last month.

The girl was allegedly administered general anaesthesia for tonsillectomy on Apil 16, leading to hepatic encephalopathy, a medical condition which causes decline in brain function.

Justice R Mahadevan, hearing a petition filed by the girl's mother I. Tamil Selvi, also directed the Health Secretary to shift the girl to any other private speciality hospital at state expense and bear the entire medical expenditure until she recovered completely.

Despite hospital Dean M.R. Vairamuthu Raju assuring that they were providing the best possible treatment to the girl, the court gave the direction.

According to the petitioner s counsel, the girl was taken to the operation theatre for surgery at around 10 a.m. on April 16.
But her family did not get to hear anything from the doctors until afternoon when the petitioner was informed that her daughter had fallen unconscious and suggested shifting her immediately to the GRH.

Doctors at the GRH told the petitioner that the drug given by the Aruppukottai hospital doctors prior to the surgery led to encephalopathy.
She said doctors had acted in a negligent manner and provided general anaesthesia without care in a wrongful manner and sought proper treatment. PTI SSN VS PAL