NAHARLAGUN, 6 Sep: A case of alleged medical negligence has been reported at the Tomo Riba Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (TRIHMS) here, following the death of a woman, Gora Ama (22), a resident of Kurung Kumey district, on Saturday.
In a complaint submitted to the Naharlagun police station, the husband of the deceased, Gora Babe, alleged that his wife’s death on the morning of 6 September was the direct result of gross negligence by the doctors at the TRIHMS.
According to the complaint, the deceased was admitted to the TRIHMS on 30 August for pregnancy and delivery. Complications during delivery led to a surgical procedure on 31 August, followed by an emergency operation on 2 September.
The complainant stated that he believed that the second surgery was necessitated due to a grave error committed during the first procedure.
He said he suspected that his wife’s urethra was accidentally severed during the initial operation, causing her kidneys and liver to fail.
She slipped into a coma on 2 September and never regained consciousness, ultimately succumbing to the complications, the FIR stated.
The complainant said also that he had reason to believe that the surgery was performed not by a senior specialist but by medical students still under internship, without proper supervision. He described this as a “clear case of professional negligence,” and demanded that a postmortem be conducted on his wife’s body to ascertain the exact cause of death.
A case was registered at the Naharlagun police station under Section 125 (b)/3(5) of the BNS on Saturday.
Speaking on the development, Health Minister Biyuram Wahge, while on his way to Ziro to attend a Cabinet meeting, expressed condolence to the bereaving family and assured that an external inquiry committee would soon be constituted in this regard, wherein none of the committee members would be from the TRIHMS.
He urged the family to have faith in the government.
Speaking to this daily, TRIHMS Deputy Chief Medical Superintendent Dr Rejum Ronya said that a preliminary inquiry committee of the TRIHMS was constituted on Saturday by TRIHMS Director Dr Moji Jini, and that it would provide “firsthand information” on the case to the police on Monday.
It’s a four-member committee, with TRIHMS Chief Medical Superintendent Dr Dukhum Raina as its chairman, Dr Ronya informed.
