ORDER

Bharat kumar Pandya, Member.—Heard Mr. Tarique Siddique, Advocate, Ms. Jyotsna Bhardwaj, Advocate, and Mr. Fajallu Rehman, Advocate for complainant. Mr. Salil Paul Advocates for OP-1 and Mr. Rajiv K. Garg and Mr. Ashish Garg, Advocates for OP-2 and Ms. Diya Kapur, Advocate for OP-3 and Mr. Pradeep Kumar and Ms. Monica Kumar, Advocates for OP-4 and Mr. Ajay Singh, Advocate for OP-5.

2. The Complaint: Ms. Kaushar Jahan died due to medical misconduct & gross negligence of opposite parties (OP-1 and OP-2) on 04.10.2013. On the advice and assurances of OP-1 Dr. Sandhya Bansal, Ms. Kaushar Jahan, was admitted at OP-2 Bansal Hospital on 03.10.2013 vide registration no 13/2780 at 08:00 pm to be operated for ASHERMAN’S SYNDROME on 04.10.2013 early morning by Dr. Sandhya Bansal. Before the operation, the possibility of any complication of ‘air embolism’ was neither explained to the deceased and complainant No.1, nor it was documented. As per OP-2 hospital, the deceased had a cardiac arrest during surgery when the hysteroscope was being removed from the uterine cavity. In the operation theater itself the condition of the patient could not be managed by the doctors due to lack of expertise, proper assessment, absence of specialist doctors and required machines etc. resulting into prolonged cardiac arrest without proper resuscitation. When the patient could not be managed by OP-1 and OP-2, ambulance from Fortis Hospital was called and after a prolonged delay of more than an hour, the patient was shifted to Fortis Hospital where she breathed her last at 3.15 pm. As per OP-4 Fortis Hospital (now deleted as OP) and as per death summary prepared by it, the cause of death is not due to cardiac reasons (EF.60 percent). It was a case of suspected air-embolism. At the same time, OP-4 hospital admits that the X-ray of chest shows bilateral haziness quite possibly due to aspiration of secretions and that suctions was not done properly at OP-2 hospital or later during transit by Ambulance. By the time the patient reached OP-4 hospital, the endotracheal tube was full of bloody secretions which was removed by Suction at OP-4 hospital. Further the ‘Arterial Blood Gas’ [AGB] report suggests that the patient was brought to OP-4 hospital in nearly irreversible and dead condition. The sequence of events make it clear that there was no attempt from the doctors at OP-2 hospital to put the best foot forward from the beginning to avoid such complication which took the life of Ms. Kaushar Jahan. It is well recognized fact that complication in Operative Hysteroscopy, occur only when contraindica-tions are ignored at, and when proper techniques are not followed or equipments/ instruments are used in an inappropriate fashion.

3. The medical misconduct & gross negligence leading to the death of Ms. Kaushar Jahan during the surgery/operative hysteroscopy and thereafter maneuvering and manipulation of documentation to cover up the actual cause of complications leading to her death can also be seen from the facts that OP-2 hospital kept the facts hiding relating to the complications which developed after anesthesia and during operation and further removed the details of the patient Ms. Kaushar Jahan from the record and register of the hospital which records are mandatory to be kept under the Medical Council of India Notification dated 11.03.2002 and Clinical Establishment Act, 2010. Despite several requests, OP-2 hospital refused to provide any details relating to the registration No.13/2780 dated 03.10.2013 of Ms. Kaushar Jahan, including records of TIME OUT carried out at operation theater before starting the surgery procedure, on the pretext that after her death now nothing is available with OP-2 hospital. There is lot of maneuvering at creating false and fabricated records and also subsequent insertions in the medical record to create false evidence in an attempt to establish that (i) Dr Sandhya Bansal is not concerned with the surgery (ii) Dr. Manchanda (OP-