Ready for second opinion, will take action if charges proved: Min

CHENNAI: Caught in a controversy that is increasingly turning into a political slugfest, doctors at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) denied allegations of negligence while administering intravenous (IV) drips to a 1.5-year-old boy, whose arm was amputated at the Institute of Child Health on Sunday.

Backing the doctors, Health Minister Ma Subramanian said, “If the child’s family do not trust the government doctors, the State government is ready to go for a second opinion from any other doctor or private hospital to understand what could have gone wrong in this case. The government is ready to bear the cost and would take full responsibility if there is any negligence.”

Speaking to the media after an inspection at ICH on Monday, the Minister said that a committee of doctors has been formed to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter.

When he was born at a private hospital, Mohamed Mihir was underweight. He had an abnormally large head measuring 61 cm, which is almost double of the usual 37 cm. Doctors said the child had multiple health problems, including a hole in the heart.

Mihir was also found to have a release of an abnormal amount of cerebrospinal fluid inside the brain, for which a shunt was placed after a surgery in May. While undergoing the surgery at the Institute of Child Health, the child suffered a cardiac arrest but was successfully revived.

The shunt had come off through anus last week and the family brought the child to the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital for further treatment. According to the doctors, the experts at the neurosurgery department analysed the reports of the boy, who was found to have venous thrombosis, because of which blood and oxygen flow was being disrupted and the circulation was not regular.

However, the boy’s parents alleged that the IV drips were not placed properly, which led to swelling and blackening of the hand. Though they informed the nurses about the issue with the boy’s hand, they did not take any action, alleged the kin, adding that the hand had started turning red.