IMPORTANT POINT
Death of Patient - Thus by any stretch of imagination was no co-relation between the tuberculosis, renal transplant and septicemia. The death was neither due to Tuberculosis nor by renal transplantation.

ORDER

Dr. S.M. Kantikar, Member.—The Appellants have filed the instant Appeal under section 19 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 (in short “the Act”), against the impugned Judgment and Final Orders dated 06.11.2015 passed by the Kerala State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Sisuviharlane Vazhuthacadu Thiruvananthapuram (hereinafter referred to as the “State Commission”) in C.C. no. 15/2008, whereby the State Commission dismissed the intervention application filed by the appellants herein.

Brief Facts:-

2. The Appeal has been filed by the family members of the deceased, Appellant No. 1 and 2 are the mother and father of the deceased, Appellant No. 3 is husband and Appellant No. 4 is the son of the deceased.

3. Ms. Laxmi Anil (since deceased, hereinafter referred to as the ‘patient’), the wife of Mr. Anil Kumar, was undergoing treatment for renal failure from 15.07.2004 at Government Medical College Thiruvananthapuram. She was also diagnosed as suffering from pericardial effusion, therefore, she was advised to take treatment at a higher center. Therefore, the patient was discharged and on 13.09.2004, got admitted in Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Opposite Party No. 1 / Respondent No. 1 – AIMS Hospital’). At the time of admission, she disclosed complete medical history to the doctors along with previous treatment records. She was advised for dialysis for renal complaint and suggested kidney transplantation at a later stage.

4. From 14.09.2004, the patient underwent continuous dialysis for a period of 20 days and was discharged on 05.10.2004 and advised to continue the dialysis as on OPD basis. But on 13.10.2004, she again got admitted to the Opposite Party No. 1 – Hospital with aggravated symptoms and she was treated as an inpatient till 20.10.2004 and was discharged again with a direction to continue her dialysis as an outpatient.

5. The treating doctors informed the relative of the patient that the patient was suffering from Tuberculosis (TB) and the treatment for TB also started along with her dialysis. She was advised to take treatment of TB for at least 6 months. The Hospital also intimated the relatives to get ready for patient’s kidney transplantation. In the meantime, the kidney of the patient’s mother was found suitable for transplantation and thereafter, on 18.01.2005, kidney transplantation was performed and the patient was discharged on 27.01.2005. The further treatment for TB was continued for a period of 4 months and it was completed on 12.05.2005. In the month of June, 2005, the patient went to Dubai and there, she was advised periodical follow-up with Dr. Poulose P. Thomas, a Nephrologist attached to Beihoul Specialty Hospital, Dubai. However, she lost her appetite and started to have irritation in the stomach after taking solid foods and her condition became worse. Therefore, she returned to Thiruvananthapuram on 08.07.2006 and got admitted to KIMS Hospital on 10.07.2006. It was alleged that the doctor started treatment without any test and discharged her on 16.07.2006. But, again she was admitted in the Opposite Party No. 1 Hospital on 18.07.2006, due to difficulty in breathing and she was shifted to ICU on ventilator. However, during treatment, she expired on 14.08.2006. The hospital informed the relatives that the cause of death was due to sepsis. Being aggrieved by the gross negligence of the treating doctors and unfair trade practices at Opposite Party No. 1 Hospital, the Complainants filed the Consumer Complaint before the State Commission, Kerala seeking compensation of Rs. 1 Crore.

6. The Opposite Parties Nos. 1 and 2 filed their separate replies and denied the allegations. It was submitted that the patient was Type-I diabetes mellitus (DM) since the age of 9 years. She had renal problems and also pericardial effusion. The pericardial effusion in such cases occurs due to TB. The effusion usually disappears after intensive dialysis sessio