Patient death stir at BMC hosp: Lens on doc's ‘behaviour'
Mumbai: Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) has sought an explanation from the medical superintendent of BMC-run VN Desai Hospital in Santacruz after receiving a complaint that accused him of escalating tension following the death of a woman and her newborn last Nov by forcibly seizing a relative's phone and smashing it.
The deaths, four days after childbirth, had sparked an emotionally charged protest by the woman's relatives, some of whom allegedly attacked a woman doctor. During the ensuing confrontation, the hospital's medical superintendent, Dr Jairaj Acharya, was recorded on a cellphone by one of the relatives. A video that surfaced later showed Dr Acharya snatching the phone. It, however, does not capture it being broken.
The complainant alleged that the phone was indeed damaged and that this act provoked the incensed crowd further. "This act outraged the mob and could have marked the beginning of the violence towards other staff," the complaint stated. "The mob could have vandalised the hospital further."
Police had lodged a case against 27 members of the crowd involved in the alleged assault, but the complainant asserted that Dr Acharya's actions played a role in escalating the situation.
The video showed verbal arguments between relatives and hospital staffers following the deaths. However, a doctor from the hospital said soon after the phone was broken, the mob turned more violent and attacked Dr Acharya and two ward attendants. "Dr Acharya's job was to defuse the situation. It was not right on the relatives' part to bring a mob, but it was also not right for the superintendent to break their phone. That only made things worse," said the doctor.
"If Dr Acharya had any objection, he should have asked the relative to stop recording. He could have told the guards to confiscate the phone or should have informed police," the complaint stated.
Dr Acharya confirmed that the council has sought an explanation. "MMC has asked me for an explanation for the action and I will be responding to it," he said.
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