An Attendant’s Account An Attendant’s Account The view from the other side of the hospital bed

Patient’s Name: Asha SachdevDate of Birth: 28th April, 1945 Died on: 8th September 2012Survived by: Husband, three daughters

Medical History Medical History

Patient Admitted to Max Hospital, Noida on

12th August’2012 for laparoscopic surgery of gallbladder removal

Expired on..

8th September 2012 from septicaemia, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and multiple organ failure

Cost of Laparoscopic Surgery

Rs 30,000

Patient’s Final Medical Bill

Rs 12 lakh, one month’s hospital stay, the loss of a life and a family torn apart by grief and despair

What Went Wrong?What Went Wrong?• The surgeon, Dr D S Bhamrah

NEVER LISTENED• He DID NOT make patient’s

family partners in her care.• He took NO CONSENT for

additional procedures (Intestinal adhesiolysis).

• He kept the patient in the OT for FOUR and a Half Hour, when it should have taken him one hour. Memories of Happier Times

The Patient Had a Stroke..The Patient Had a Stroke..

She gestured to her daughter to fetch her a pen and paper.

Sensing something alarming, she tried to explain that she could not move her right limb but the nursing staff paid no heed.

Almost an hour later, in response to the patient’s persistent complaints , a doctors team was summoned - but by then the maximum damage was already done.

• Intestinal Adhesiolysis is an elective procedure, not an emergency intervention?

• Knowing that the patient was hypertensive and diabetic, why did Dr Bhamrah carry out Intestinal Adhesiolysis without the patient’s or her family’s consent? Was is to jack up the hospital bill?

• Why was no neurosurgeon called? Even if Max did not have one on its roll, the family would have happily paid the fee of an external consultant?

Unanswered Questions Unanswered Questions

No Treatment for Four DaysNo Treatment for Four Days

Max, NOIDA did not have a CT scan machine so for almost four days, the patient received no treatment for her stroke.

Strong Evidence of CulpabilityStrong Evidence of Culpability

• At the time of discharge, Max billed the family for Rs 4,1,7045.85. Very condescendingly, they waived off the surgical cost (Rs 30883) of the second procedure and cancelled a bunch of Dr Bhamrah’s visitation charges. The family was only provided the final “doctored” bill.

Asha Sachdev with her daughters and granddaughters in

Mussourie

No One to Decode Medical No One to Decode Medical GobbledygookGobbledygook

‘Septicemia’ was mentioned for the first time on the patient’s discharge slip. Both septicemia and ARDS that the patient developed are post-surgical complications, related to hospital hygiene factors.

Who Was Asha Sachdev?Who Was Asha Sachdev?

She was a 67-year old wife and mother to three

daughters.

Health-conscious and very disciplined in her eating

habits, she never missed a day’s exercise even when she was on a vacation!

Full of Life…Full of Life…

Last year on a family vacation in Mussourie, we pushed Mama into attempting ‘flying fox’ adventure stunt and

at 66, she gamely obliged

24-hour Vigil Outside the ICU24-hour Vigil Outside the ICU

For almost a month, the patient’s family hung on to every word the doctors said.They sought answers but none were provided. At best, the doctors were nonchalant. At worst, they looked hugely embarrassed (!) aloof and clinically detached.

Meanwhile…Meanwhile…• The unconscious figure on the bed,

hooked to ventilator - gradually slipped from our hands.

• Each day, drop by drop, life ebbed out of her.

• There came a time when she stopped acknowledging her daughter’s presence with a smile or a gentle squeeze of their hands when it was placed in hers.

A Pathetic Track RecordA Pathetic Track RecordWe have met three ex-patients of the surgeon,

who have similar experiences. “If you

decide to sue him, we are with you,” they told us.

A legal notice has been served to Max Hospital and Dr D S Bhamrah.

I Wrote to the ARDS FoundationI Wrote to the ARDS Foundation

And promptly received a reply from Eileen Rubin, the President of the ARDS Foundation (http://www.ardsusa.org/), who is herself an ARDS survivor.

Later, when I broke the news of my mother’s death, she wrote back “I am so sorry for your loss.  I know how much she was loved and how much you fought for her.  The world is a poorer place...  ”Eileen.

In Hindsight…In Hindsight…When you choose a hospital for your

patient, especially for a surgical intervention, go to one with full infrastructure

Seek ex-patient’s referencesComb the net for the surgeon’s track recordDon’t be afraid to ask questions, even when

the doctor’s answers are vague or evasive

Thank You!