In a case of medical negligence, two doctors from Katoor, Coimbatore, left a piece of gauze inside a four-and-a-half-year-old boy, Vishnu, while performing a ureter re-implantation surgery.
Vishnu’s father, Vinodhkumar, has filed a complaint against Dr Dharmendra of Royal Care Hospital and Dr Kannadasan, the radiologist from Government Hospital, for withholding information regarding the surgery. The complaint was filed with the Katoor police.
“My son had a reflex problem with his kidney. We consulted Dr Dharmendra at the Royal Care Hospital, who suggested surgery after doing an MCU test. Post the re-implantation surgery, my son was hospitalized for 12 days. After returning home, he complained of intense pain while urinating,” Vinodhkumar told media persons on Thursday.
The duo visited Dr Dharmendra again to discuss the problem. After several scans and blood tests, a block was detected in Vishnu’s abdomen by radiologist Dr Kannadasan. However, instead of telling what the block was, he asked the father to discuss it in detail with the doctor.
“He said there was a block and asked us to discuss with the doctor. When I spoke to Dr Dharmendra about this, he said that there was nothing to worry about and that pain is normal after a surgery. He admitted Vishnu in hodpitsl for three days, gave him some treatment and discharged him,” said Vinodhkumar.
Determined to get a second opinion, Vinodhkumar visited several hospitals such as Apollo Hospital in Tiruchy, Ramachandra Hospital in Chennai and Velammal Hospital in Madurai.
“A second scan revealed a 3X3X2 mobile mass and we immediately consulted Vedanayagam Hospital in Coimbatore where Dr Kandasam, a urology specialist, told us that a piece of gauze was retained inside Vishnu’s abdomen after the surgery,” he said
Another surgery was performed on 3 January after which Vishnu was relieved of pain.
“I have been sitting in hospitals for no fault of mine or my son’s. We couldn’t celebrate New Year or any other occasion because of this,” he said.
The Katoor police station has registered a case against the doctors under section 337 of the IPC, which criminalizes any life or personal safety endangering incidents as a result of negligence and awards a maximum of 6-month prison term to those convicted.