A public interest litigation (PIL) has been filed in the principal bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court at Jabalpur, raising concerns about private hospitals in the state employing unqualified MBBS doctors to perform Cesarean section (C-section) deliveries. This legal action follows a specific complaint to the Harda district collector, alleging that ‘100 C-section procedures’ were conducted in a private hospital in Harda by unqualified personnel. The complaint was also directed to the Madhya Pradesh Medical Council in Bhopal, which subsequently transferred the case to the Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) in Harda.
Petitioner Vijay Bajaj’s attorney, Aditya Singh, stressed that the Harda scenario is not a unique instance. Singh claims that many hospitals in the state are using MBBS physicians to do C-sections, an operation that should only be carried out by specialists. The Public Interest Litigation (PIL) advocates for a thorough inquiry to determine the scope of these practices and guarantee compliance with medical rules.
Singh clarified that there are precise criteria from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare about who is qualified to do C-sections. These rules state that a C-section can only be performed by an MBBS physician or a general surgeon in an emergency or in the absence of a trained gynecologist. Under no circumstances may a general surgeon or an MBBS physician do the surgery if a gynecologist is available. This explanation highlights the gravity of the PIL’s charges, which contend that certain private hospitals’ current practices are in violation of these laws.
The PIL demands a thorough examination into the routine C-sections performed by MBBS physicians in Madhya Pradesh’s private hospitals. It aims to comprehend the rationale behind and methods of doing these procedures in the absence of licensed gynecologists. In addition, the PIL demands an accounting of the number of gynecologists working in private hospitals to conduct vaginal or C-section deliveries. Additionally, it compares the proportion of C-section surgeries performed in government and private institutions throughout the state.This legal action brings to light a critical problem with the Madhya Pradesh healthcare system: the use of unskilled doctors for specialized procedures like C-sections might seriously jeopardize the health of mothers and their unborn children. In order to protect patients’ health and wellbeing, the PIL is demanding a high-level investigation to make sure private hospitals follow medical guidelines. The verdict in this lawsuit may have a significant impact on how medical practices are governed and monitored in all of the state’s private hospitals.
SOURCE:
MEDICAL DIALOGUES
