Bargarh: Tension gripped Odisha’s Bargarh town on Tuesday amid allegation of medical negligence after a woman died nearly a month after undergoing a cesarean delivery at a private hospital.
The deceased has been identified as Sristi Prabha Pradhan, a resident of Hatisar village under Bhatli police limits.
According to a complaint lodged by her husband, Purna Chandra Sahu (33), a constable, Sristi was admitted to the private hospital on May 13 and she delivered a baby boy. However, during the surgical procedure, the doctors allegedly committed a critical error by accidentally cutting her urinary bladder, which triggered severe internal bleeding.
A relative said that the medical staff packed the area with surgical gauze to suppress the bleeding instead of addressing the surgical error properly. This led to a severe internal infection. The family members were kept in the dark about
the blunder even when they were asked to arrange blood for transfusion. As her condition rapidly deteriorated, she was referred to Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) in Burla at around 5.30 pm the same day.
It was at VIMSAR that they got to know that Shrusti’s condition was critical due to a severe uterine infection, which had developed after the bladder was cut during surgery and subsequently attached to the uterus. She was later shifted to VIMS Private Hospital in Sambalpur, where she remained in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) from May 14 to June 5. As her condition showed no signs of improvement, she was moved to Apollo Hospital in Bhubaneswar on June 5.
Unfortunately, despite subsequent medical interventions, the woman succumbed to the complications at around 10.30 pm on June 8 after battling for life for 26 days.
Following which, outraged family members and locals took the deceased woman’s body and staged a massive demonstration. They placed her body in the middle of the road near Goshala Junction on Gandhi Road in Bargarh town, bringing traffic to a standstill. A case has been lodged at the Bargarh Town police station seeking a thorough investigation, stringent action against the hospital authorities, and compensation and financial assistance for the children of the deceased woman. Another relative alleged that a nurse performed the surgery instead of the doctor, leading to the critical error.
The hospital is yet to release an official response regarding the allegations.