Palamu civil surgeon suspends Jeevan Jyoti Nursing Home’s registration for three days
THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK Daltonganj, October 27: Palamu Civil Surgeon-cum-Chief Medical Officer Dr Anil Kumar Sriwastwa has suspended the registration of Jeevan…
THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK
Daltonganj, October 27: Palamu Civil Surgeon-cum-Chief Medical Officer Dr Anil Kumar Sriwastwa has suspended the registration of Jeevan Jyoti Nursing Home under the Clinical Establishments Act for three days, starting October 26, following the deaths of two women who underwent caesarean deliveries at the facility.
“It’s a 3-day suspension in which this nursing home has been restrained from admitting any new patient, conducting normal vaginal deliveries, and performing cesarean operations “, said the civil surgeon.
Explaining the temporary restriction, he said, “A 5-member team led by the DRCHO (district reproductive and child health officer) Dr S K Ravi will assess and evaluate the ‘gap analysis’ of this nursing home where two women lost their lives after hours of cesarean operation.”
The newborn babies of both women are safe, he said.
Two women die after caesarean deliveries
The first woman, identified as Jyoti Dubey, 27, delivered a live baby girl weighing three kilograms at the nursing home on October 23. She died a few hours after the caesarean operation, the civil surgeon said.
The following day, October 24, another woman, Suman Pandey, 28, delivered twin boys weighing 2.2 kilograms each through a caesarean operation at the same facility. The babies were delivered within a gap of one minute, according to the civil surgeon.
Suman’s condition deteriorated rapidly, and she was shifted to a private multispeciality hospital in Daltonganj, where she died, sources said.
Clarifying the circumstances, the civil surgeon said Jyoti died at Jeevan Jyoti Nursing Home, while Suman died at the other multispeciality hospital. However, the preliminary report confirmed that both women had undergone caesarean sections at Jeevan Jyoti Nursing Home.
Five-member team to assess the nursing home
The three-day suspension will allow a five-member team led by District Reproductive and Child Health Officer Dr S. K. Ravi to examine the facility and conduct a gap analysis to identify any shortcomings in its functioning, the civil surgeon said.
Dr Priya Sinha and Dr Rakesh Kumar run Jeevan Jyoti Nursing Home, and they are reportedly well regarded in the town’s medical fraternity.
Defending the facility, Dr Rakesh Kumar told this correspondent, “The nursing home made all last-ditch efforts to save both the women but in vain. Blood and ambulance were made available by the nursing home without any delay.”
He reiterated that there had been no gross or reckless negligence on the part of the nursing home and said the facility followed the protocols prescribed under the Clinical Establishments Act.
Supreme Court ruling cited in defence
Lawyers cited the Supreme Court’s landmark judgment in Jacob Mathew vs State of Punjab, which addresses the threshold for criminal liability in cases of alleged medical negligence. They said the court had held that doctors should not face criminal prosecution for a mere error of judgment or therapeutic failure in the absence of the requisite degree of negligence.
Mixed reactions to the suspension
The civil surgeon’s order has drawn mixed reactions locally. While a section of residents has welcomed the action, others have called for the nursing home’s outpatient department to be restored without delay.
Sources also alleged that some influential players in the private nursing home business may have amplified the incidents because of commercial rivalry. These allegations have not been independently verified.
