More trouble seems to be brewing for Dr Atul Goel, head of the department of neurosurgery at KEM Hospital.
More trouble seems to be brewing for Dr Atul Goel, head of the department of neurosurgery at KEM Hospital.
The Parel civic hospital has approached JJ Hospital to probe the allegations that Dr Goel had not taken permission from the ethics committee for using a “non-scientific and bio-mechanically unproven” technique to perform complex surgeries and making money.
Dr Goel has developed a device called Goel cervical facet and a new method for surgery of cervical spondylosis. He faces charges of using poor patients to try his device to treat cervical spondylosis without approval from the ethics committee.
He has also been accused of publishing forged and inflated data on his research paper in the June issue of the Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine, to establish his device.
Dr TP Lahane, dean of Sir JJ Group of Hospitals, said: “We have set up a four-member committee led by Dr S Nanandwar, who is a member of the Maharashtra Medical Council. We will look into the ethical issues of this kind of surgery and if it did benefit the patients, who paid a lot of money.”
Dr Goel allegedly forced patients to pay Rs30,000 for the device to the General Surgical Company directly. A conventional device costs just Rs5,000.
Earlier, a three-member committee of KEM hospital had found Dr Goel guilty of using his patients as guinea pigs.
“He did not even inform the patients that he was trying a new method,” said a doctor who was on the committee.
However, Dr Abhidha Shah, was accused of aiding Dr Goel, won’t face any severe charges as the committee found that she was “only assisting her senior”.
Dr Lahane said the municipal corporation wanted a third party to investigate into the issue and so approached JJ Hospital.
“We have not received the KEM Hospital committee report, we will ask for it. Dr Goel is a renowned neurosurgeon. We need to carefully evaluate all the angles related to the issue,” Dr Lahane said.
The Maharashtra Medical Council, too, claims it had not got any report from the Parel hospital. “As far as suspending the registration of Dr Goel is concerned, the corporation is the authority. It is for the hospital and the corporation to take decision,” said Dr Kishore Taori, president of the Maharashtra Medical Council.
Dr Goel could not be reached for comment as he is “not in town.”
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}