Take strict action against careless docs, staff: Chief Secy to Principal Secretary

Tribune News Service

Manav Mander

Ludhiana, September 7

Doctors, nurses and other employees of the Civil Hospital, will face strict action in the case of death of a road mishap victim at the Civil Hospital, Ludhiana, after he fall off a stretcher on August 27.

Death of road mishap victim after falling off stretcher at Civil Hospital

Taking serious note of the incident, Chief Secretary Anurag Verma had shot a letter to the Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, and directed him to personally visit the Civil Hospital and take strict action by September 13 against all persons concerned, which include doctors, nurses and other staff on whose part lapses/negligence have been found in the inquiry report.

He said a precious life had been lost. The Chief Secretary has also asked the Principal Secretary to analyse the complete set up and issue clear-cut guidelines/standard operating procedures so that such an incident should not occur in future at the hospital or any other government health institutions. He has also written to the President, Punjab Medical Council, and President, Punjab Nurses Registration Council, stating that take strict action against the doctors and staff nurses on whose part lapses/negligence had been found in the inquiry report.

Deputy Commissioner Surabhi Malik had submitted the inquiry report to the Chief Secretary on September 4 in which lapses were found against 11 employees. Four officials were asked to ensure better management of their work.

In the report, of the 11 employees, serious lapses were found against six employees, including two staff nurses, two doctors, a Class IV employee and a safai Sewak, and supervisory lapses against five doctors.

Committing a serious lapse, a staff nurse verbally directed a Class IV employee to shift the patient to the unidentified male ward without the knowledge of the house surgeon/EMO on duty after which the series of events followed and another staff nurse in the ward left the patient unattended on the stretcher as no bed was available. Her duty was till 8 pm but she left the ward at 7:36 pm. The house surgeon advised CT scan but no effort was made in getting it done nor did he made many attempt to trace the patient after he was shifted to the ward. Surprisingly, the Emergency Medical Officer was not aware about the patient. It was observed that patients are coming in/shifted out without the knowledge of the EMO and, hence, the official had not been monitoring the ward properly. The outsourced safai sewak saw the body of the victim lying on the floor but took no initiative to inform medical staff on duty.

Recommendations of inquiry committee

Giving recommendations for future, the inquiry committee has recommended regular training regarding SOPs and protocols of patient management to be imparted to medical officers, staff nurses and ward attendants, staff position in hospital as per the IPHS guidelines, strict control over duty roasters and leaves, change in casual late-coming behaviour of staff and doctors and staff should be polite and empathetic towards patients and compulsory sudden/supervisory rounds of administrative doctors.

The case

On August 27, an unidentified man aged 40-45 years was brought to the Civil Hospital through the 108 ambulance service after he got serious injuries in a road mishap at Sherpur Chowk. He was given first aid but later shifted to a wrong ward. He was lying on a stretcher due to lack of beds from where he fell off and succumbed to his injuries. The Chief Secretary had asked the DC to probe into the matter and submit the report.

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