Mumbai: Two doctors booked over medical negligence for woman’s death

Sai Samruddhi Hospital at Kanjurmarg where Manisha Pawar was operated on to remove her tonsils. Pics/Rajesh Gupta

The Vikhroli Parksite police booked two doctors on Monday for medical negligence which led to the death of a 35-year-old woman in 2019. The woman had undergone a procedure to remove her tonsils at a private hospital in Kanjurmarg where they treated her. The police are in the process of issuing summons to the doctors asking them to appear for investigation.

Vikhroli (E) resident Manisha Pawar was suffering from tonsillitis. A local doctor told her to get the tonsils removed when the swelling reduced. Manisha visited the doctor in the last week of March 2019, when he said she can undergo the operation. He referred her to Sai Samruddhi Hospital in Kanjurmarg (E).

What happened

Her husband Jalinder Pawar took Manisha to the hospital on April 10, 2019 and they met Dr Chetan Shetty who advised the operation as soon as possible. Manisha got admitted to the hospital on April 11 around 7 am. ENT doctor Chetan shetty and anaesthetist Dr Pruthvi Shetty operated on her and at 11.45 am they told her family that she had to be kept in the ICU as there were some complications.

Manisha and Jalinder Pawar with their kids

After half an hour, doctors told the Pawar family Manisha's condition was deteriorating and she should be transferred to another hospital. Her family rushed Manisha to Aadhar Hospital, Naupada (Thane), where she was put on ventilator and declared dead at 6.40 pm. An ADR was filed at Naupada police station and the body was sent to JJ Hospital for post-mortem.

Negligence proved

A team of doctors from JJ Group of hospitals later examined whether Manisha's death was caused due to medical negligence by doctors and the investigation proved this was so. They found there were no oxygen cylinders or ventilators at the Kanjurmarg hospital to stabilise her. The panel also found a delay by doctors in shifting her to a facility with life support system.

"As per the panel report we filed an FIR against the two doctors, Dr Chetan Shetty and Dr Pruthvi Shetty," said an officer from Parksite police station. "My daughter was 10-years-old and son was 4 when this incident occurred. It took almost 3 years to book the doctors. I want justice for my kids and family which has faced such a huge loss due to the negligence of doctors," said Jalinder Pawar, a dialysis technician in a Shahad-based private hospital.

The doctors have been booked under IPC Sections 304A (Causing death by negligence) and 336 (endangering life or personal safety of others). "We have lodged the FIR and will summon the doctors for investigation," said Senior Inspector Diwakar Shelke of Parksite police station. This reporter went to the hospital at Kanjurmarg but didn't get to meet Dr Chetan Shetty or Dr Pruthvi. Nursing staff said they are on-call doctors, only Dr Chetan has an OPD for patients. Attempts to find their contact details or those of the hospital authorities did not yield results.

Apr 11
When in 2019 Manisha Pawar died