M A I N   N E W S

Justice Verma’s death
Family moves MCI against Delhi council’s clean chit to top docs
Accuses 4 docs of medical negligence; first hearing on Oct 9
Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 30
Almost one-and-a-half years after former Chief Justice of India JS Verma died following admission to two top Delhi hospitals, the Medical Council of India (MCI) will decide if his death occurred due to medical negligence, as alleged by his family.

The MCI has admitted the family’s appeal recently filed against Delhi Medical Council’s (DMC) order that exonerated four doctors — one at Bhardwaj Hospital and Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, Okhla, and three at Medanta, Medicity, Gurgaon, — from charges of medical negligence.

Talking to The Tribune, Justice Verma’s daughter Shubhra Verma said: “The MCI has scheduled the first hearing for October 9 but we are seeking more time.”

Justice Verma, the author of criminal law amendments post Delhi gang rape of December 2012, was admitted to Fortis Escorts Heart Institute on April 17, 2013. On April 19, 2013, he was shifted to Medanta, where he died on April 22 following a fatal cardiac condition.

Appellants in the case — Justice Verma’s daughters Shubhra and R Mathur and the latter’s husband Dr Dalip Mathur — had earlier approached the DMC against the doctors but the Council recently dismissed the case saying “no medical negligence can be attributed to doctors in the treatment administered to late Justice JS Verma”.

The charges now in appeal before the MCI are — a Bhardwaj hospital doctor, who is also Consultant Interventional Cardiologist at Fortis, without seeing Justice Verma’s abnormal liver function reports and blood clotting results, gave him drugs that caused bleeding, multiple organ failure and death.

Mathurs allege that the doctor failed to diagnose the deceased’s liver disease and failed to detect fluid overload and low calcium when the patient was admitted to Escorts on April 17 with upper gastrointestinal bleeding.

DMC’s 43-page order records the complainant as saying: “At Escorts, Justice Verma had endoscopy and multiple blood transfusions. But transfusions were not accompanied by administration of intravenous calcium, essential to prevent low calcium especially in patients with liver dysfunction. This can impair cardiac function.”

The appeal retains these charges against the said doctor and against three experts from Medanta where it is alleged that upon Justice Verma’s transfer on April 19, his timely cardiac review didn’t happen because the expert “was busy in his Defence Colony clinic”.

Justice Verma’s family alleges: “Low calcium levels in the patient were not managed for 4.5 hours. Inappropriate resuscitation was given to the patient who was administered 27 shocks without adequate chest compression. This caused significant metabolic derangement adversely affecting his survival chances.”

The allegation

* Low calcium levels in the patient were not managed for 4.5 hours

* Inappropriate resuscitation was given to the patient who was administered 27 shocks without adequate chest compression

* This caused significant metabolic derangement adversely affecting his survival chances.