Chandigarh hospital told to pay Rs 25 lakh for medical negligence

The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission here has held Mukat Hospital guilty of medical negligence and directed it to pay Rs 25 lakh as compensation to a woman for causing her mental agony and harassment.

The commission has also directed the hospital to pay Rs 10,000 as litigation cost and Rs 6.37 lakh spent on the patient’s treatment in another hospital.

The commission passed the order on a complaint filed by Susheela. She said she was treated for gall bladder stone in the hospital in September 2021. She underwent a surgery for insertion of a stent in the pancreas. She alleged that during the operation, the stent got broken and a part of it got stuck in the pancreatic duct. She was referred to a private hospital in Gurugram, where the part of the broken stent was removed. The surgery cost her Rs 6.37 lakh.

Meanwhile, the hospital authorities denied the allegations of negligence. The counsel for the hospital said a consent was duly obtained from the patient after explaining her the need for the procedure and risks involved.

After hearing the arguments, the commission directed the hospital to pay Rs 25 lakh to the complainant as compensation for causing mental agony and harassment.