‘It’s murder, not death’: Haryana govt to lodge FIR against Gurgaon Fortis

Gross negligence by hospital, will ask MCI to cancel its licence, says Vij

CHANDIGARH: A three-member panel formed by the Haryana government has found gross negligence by the Fortis Hospital in Gurgaon, causing the death of a seven-year-old girl suffering from dengue.

“There were many irregularities, unethical practices and the protocol for diagnosis and medical duties was not followed. In simple words, it was not a death, it was a murder,” state health minister Anil Vij told reporters here on Wednesday after the panel submitted its report.

“We are going to lodge a police case against the hospital for negligence which caused the death of Adya. We have already sent a notice, asking why the hospital’s pharmacy and blood bank’s licences should not be cancelled. We

will also write to the Medical Council of India (MCI) to cancel the hospital ‘s licence,” said VIJ, who was flanked by the probe committee members.

The health department panel had been formed to look into charges of foul play in the treatment and overcharging (a bill of Rs 15.5 lakh had been made) that Adya’s parents — Jayant Singh and Deepti — had levelled against the hospital.

Adya’s parents had posted

their plight on social media, triggering an outrage and a promise of action by the Union health minister JP Nadda.

“Adya was diagnosed with dengue on August 28 at Rockland Hospital, Dwarka. She remained admitted there till August 31 from where she was shifted to Fortis,” Vij said. “She was admitted to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) in an emergency condition at the Fortis Memorial Research Institute (FMRI), Gurgaon, and remained there for 15 days till September 14. She died while being shifted back to Rockland hospital in an ambulance that lacked ventilator and other facilities,” the minister said.

He added that committee members found that “the patient was given highly expensive medicines despite the availability of various other medicines, including generic ones”. A costly injection was administered on most occasions, which costs Rs 3,112, whereas a substitute worth Rs 499 was available.

“The death of the girl happened due to not following the Leave Against Medical Advice protocol. The girl was on a ventilator, but she was put in an ordinary ambulance, ventilator was withdrawn and an ambu bag was not provided in that, which became the cause of her death," said the minister.