Deaths of dialysis patients: Govt hospital superintendent, staff booked in Kerala

Alappuzha (Kerala), Jan 5 (PTI) A superintendent of a government taluk hospital and the staff there were booked for alleged medical negligence in connection with the recent death of two dialysis patients in this district, police said on Monday.

Haripad police registered the case based on the complaint from the kin of one of the deceased persons, alleging that both men had experienced fever and diarrhoea soon after the dialysis at the taluk hospital on December 29.

The severe infection caused by the unhygienic conditions in the dialysis unit at the Haripad Taluk Hospital had led to their death, they alleged.

Both men had been shifted to other hospitals when they developed uneasiness and died on subsequent days late December, they alleged.

As per the FIR, the case was registered based on the complaint of the family of Ramachandran (60), one of the deceased.

The complainant alleged that the dialysis unit of the taluk hospital was being operated in a negligent manner.

Though the accused--the superintendent of the hospital and the staff of the dialysis unit--were aware that the negligent condition there could pose a danger to human life, they ignored it, the complainant alleged.

A native of Haripad, Ramachandran died on December 31 while undergoing treatment at a multi-speciality hospital in Mavelikkara. The other man, Majeed, hailing from Kayamkulam, died at a medical college hospital in the district on December 30, the FIR added.

The case was registered against the hospital superintendent and the dialysis unit staff under sections 125 (act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 106 (1) (causing death by rash or negligent acts) of BNS, police added. PTI LGK ADB