Hospital pays penalty for medical negligence

New Delhi: Over-crowded wards and overtime duty of doctors are not excuses to justify medical negligence, the Delhi State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (DSCDRC) has observed, while asking a renowned government hospital to pay Rs 11.05 lakh to a man whose wife had died due to its deficient service.

The commission directed the Safdurjung Hospital, one of largest central government hospitals in the country, to ensure that an adequate number of doctors or specialists remain on duty irrespective of the fact that a particular day is a working day or a holiday.

The commission, headed by judicial member N.P. Kaushik, while referring to report from Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), which had taken strong exception to the hospital’s conduct, said there was “gross negligence” on the part of the hospital as the 42-year-old patient could neither be shifted to the ICU nor put on ventilator due to non-availability of beds.

The commission also said, “It is clear that there is an admission of “deficiency in service” on the part of the treating doctors especially as per report given by the panel of experts appointed by DGHS.