Karnataka govt to probe death of pregnant TN woman denied treatment ‘over lack of papers’

 

Health Minister K Sudhakar says hospital staff and doctors can never insist on patients' documents in critical situations.

Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar has ordered an inquiry into the death of a pregnant woman from Tamil Nadu after she was denied admission to the Tumakuru district hospital allegedly for lack of papers.

“After visiting the hospital last night and having taken stock of the shocking event, I have ordered a probe and stern action in this matter. Prima facie, three nurses in charge of the maternity ward and an on-duty doctor are found negligent. I have ordered their immediate suspension along with further investigation into it,” he said Friday.

The woman developed labour pain on Wednesday and was taken to the hospital, where she was asked to produce a Thayi card (issued to pregnant women in Karnataka) and the hospital’s OPD card. As she could not produce any of these documents, the woman was denied treatment. She died along with her twin babies while delivering them at home Thursday.

The minister said hospital staff and doctors should never insist on patients’ documents in critical situations. “Time and again, the state government has made it clear through several orders,” he said.

The Minister said that police had been trying to get in contact with the woman’s family for the past 36 hours. “Irrespective of which state the woman belongs to, she should have been treated at the hospital on humanitarian grounds. This incident has indeed created a mistrust in the entire public health system,” he said.

The minister said that if found guilty, the suspended doctor and nurses would be dismissed and that legal action would be initiated against them.

“I urge doctors and hospital staff to take appropriate measures to make sure that such incidents never repeat in future,” he said.