The patient – a young man – met with a serious accident. He fell from a moving train which gravely injured both his hands. He was rushed to a hospital where his sugar level was found very high – it was almost 280.
The doctors at hospital prescribed oral medicine to get the sugar level down. The patient’s father however, shifted him to another hospital after three days. Gangrene developed and unfortunately patient’s right hand had to be amputated at the second hospital.
The first hospital was sued by patient’s father. It was alleged that the doctors did little to bring the sugar level down which caused setting-in of gangrene, which further resulted into amputation of right hand. How would a young man without right hand lead his life, implored patient’s father and claimed a hefty compensation.
The hospital presented its side of the story. It was stated that the patient’s hand was badly crushed in the accident. After ascertaining high sugar level, patient’s father was explained properly that it’d have to be first brought under control to acceptable pre-operable levels.
It was further stated that several experts were consulted while the patient was admitted. However, his father sought Discharge Against Medical Advice and took him to another hospital.
The Commission went through meticulously prepared medical records and observed the following:
“It is clear that one of the reasons of increase in sugar level in blood is stress and anxiety. The patient met with an accident and was admitted to the trauma centre with crushed injury of left elbow and forearm with crushed injury of right forearm and hand due to fall from the train. In his case history, the trauma centre has written complete details and also showed the region of crushed area by diagram”.
“The patient had a history of diabetes but previous pathological reports and treatment papers were not brought by his father. The anaesthetist had noted that patient has a random sugar of 279. He is known case of diabetes mellitus and was on oral hypoglycaemic agents, so it is wrong to say that the doctor did not take care of his diabetes. His both hands were crushed and it was a cause of stress and anxiety which further spiked the sugar level in blood”.
The Commission rejected allegations against the hospital and dismissed the case.
Source:Order pronounced by Uttar Pradesh State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission on 4th August, 2022.