A five-member medical board judged Landmark Hospital in Sector 33, Chandigarh, guilty of malpractice that resulted in the death of 74-year-old Amarjit Kaur in April 2024, exposing a terrible case of medical incompetence. The incident started on March 16 when Kaur, a Mohali resident living in Sector 63, was brought to Landmark Hospital following a fall. She received treatment, but was instructed to come back on April 3 for a follow-up. Her extremely low sodium levels (120) before the follow-up, however, indicated a worsening of her disease. Rather than admitting her, the hospital asked her to come back in three days and sent her home with medication.
After experiencing seizures on April 4, Kaur was brought to the emergency department of Sector 32’s Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), where she died 12 days later. The family accused Landmark Hospital of failing to provide proper care for a critically ill patient and lodged a complaint with Chandigarh’s UT adviser, administrator, health secretary, and director of health.
The family’s suffering escalated when, on April 7, they went to a government hospital to get Kaur an MRI; however, they had to have a letter in writing from Landmark Hospital stating that she wasn’t fit for the surgery. Her care was made more difficult by the private hospital’s refusal to produce this letter. Furthermore, when Kaur was later admitted to the government hospital, Landmark Hospital neglected to provide the required records of a femur bone implant, which resulted in inappropriate treatment.
The matter was looked into by the medical board, which was headed by Dr. AK Attri, Director Principal of GMCH-32. Additional board members included Dr. Sushil Mahi, the medical superintendent of Government Multi-Specialty Hospital-Sector 16, Dr. Naveen Pandey, an associate professor, and Dr. Pawan Bansal, president of the Indian Medical Association of Chandigarh. Director of Health Suman Singh of Chandigarh was also on the board. Sanjay D’Cruz, who oversees the medical branch of GMCH Sector 32, Prof. PN Gupta, Prof. Rohit Jindal, and Associate Prof. Ashwini Soni offered their expert comments.
The board came to the conclusion that Kaur’s worsening illness was not addressed by the doctors at Landmark Hospital during her follow-up after considering statements made by interested parties. The hospital failed to provide any documentation to support the admission of Kaur because of her low salt levels or any indication that the patient or any of her companions had refused to be admitted. The hospital’s incompetence was further exposed by the absence of paperwork.
The decision to file a police complaint for additional proceedings was prompted by the family’s complaint and the medical board’s findings. Efforts to elicit remarks from Landmark Hospital concerning these advancements proved fruitless, hence excluding the hospital’s viewpoint on the matter.
SOURCE:
HINDUSTAN TIMES
