Lawyer gets ₹15 lakh in damages for loss of leg due to hospital's medical negligence

The Raigad District Consumer Complaints Redressal Commission recently ordered a hospital and two doctors working at the hospital to pay damages worth ₹15 lakh to a lawyer who was rendered handicap by improper treatment and medical negligence of the medical personnel. [Ravindra Patil v. Lifeline Hospital & Ors.].Complainant’s caseThe complainant, advocate Ravindra Patil, had suffered injuries in a motor vehicle accident on December 3, 2019.The respondent doctors were tending to the complainant, and did not permit him to meet his relatives and made him apprehensive about his medical condition.Without giving any information about the medical procedure to be performed, the complainant claimed that the blood vessels of his left leg were removed, even though his right leg was injured. He was informed that those vessels were transferred to his injured leg.The complainant also claimed that post the surgery, he was not allowed to meet his relatives and the medicines demanded for treatment along with medical tests were also more expensive, as high as ₹8000 to ₹10,000.The complainant contended that he was told by the hospital that his leg could not be treated and he could have tried in a different hospital.On December 21, 2019, the complainant was informed that his leg could not be saved after his leg had swollen up and started giving out a peculiar smell.On December 14, 2019, the right leg was cut off from the knee. Meanwhile his left leg seemed infected because of the improper surgery.The complainant sought to get discharged from the hospital, and alleged that he wasn’t given his medical file because he refused to sign on the document which stated that he received successful medical treatment and did not have any infection.The complainant stated that after amputating his right leg, and infecting his left leg, the hospital charged him for medicines worth ₹2 lakh and hospital fees of ₹1.25 lakh.After getting admitted in JJ hospital, the complainant claimed to have received proper treatment which cured his infection in 21 days and the amount charged was only ₹25,000.The complainant received his files only after he wrote to the hospital to hand him the file failing which he will initiate appropriate legal action.The complainant then approached the consumer commission stating that due to callous attitude and negligence by the doctor and the hospital, the complainant was rendered a handicap permanently.He sought damages for the medical negligence in addition to refund of the entire amount he paid for treatment with interest..Hospital’s responseThe hospital and the doctor opposed the application stating that the complainant had come to the hospital on his own account.Additionally, the discharge card of JJ did not note that his medical condition was due to negligence.The hospital also stated that there were CCTV cameras which permitted the relatives to see the patient. They claimed that the relatives were kept informed by the hospital of the procedure being conducted.They claimed that on January 20, 2010, the complainant abruptly sought for discharge and did not even clear the dues.They claimed that the entire amount due from the complainant to the hospital was ₹2.66 lakh and he had paid only ₹1.25 lakh.The respondents also contended that the complainant also filed for damages of ₹10 lakh from the motor vehicle owner before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Alibaug..Commission's findings and rulingAfter hearing contentions of both sides, the Commission deduced that the complainant suffered monetary and physical losses because of medical negligence.“Complainant is a renowned lawyer. He was also the bread-winner of the family. He has suffered about 60% handicap due to the medical negligence and dereliction of duty of the respondents,” the order stated.In view of this, the Commission directed the hospital and the doctors to compensate the complainant within 45 days of this order.Failure of the same would accrue interest on the amount at the rate of 12% per annum from the date the complaint is made till payment is made..[Read Order]