Kozhikode: The mother of a four-month-old baby, who passed away on Monday, is planning to approach the court seeking justice for alleged negligence by Thamarassery Taluk Government Hospital during her delivery. The baby passed away at 3am on Monday at Government Medical College Hospital after four months of life with ventilator support.
The family alleges that the baby lost its life due to negligence from health workers, including the gynaecologist at the taluk hospital, where they sought assistance when the labour pain began. They also claim that Thamarassery police authorities took no action on the complaint filed three months ago.
The child, born to Gireesh and Bindu from Puthuppadi, required ventilator support from birth. "The baby had difficulty breathing, having sustained brain damage due to delivery delay. If the Thamarassery hospital provided proper treatment, this tragedy could have been avoided," the mother told Onmanorama.
Bindu, who handles household chores, and her husband KT Gireesh, a daily wage laborer, had waited 17 years for a child. During her ninth month of pregnancy, Bindu visited Thamarassery hospital on December 13, 2023. After an IV test, the doctor advised them to visit her private clinic. She recommended a C-Section on December 21. But that same night, Bindu began bleeding, and the amniotic fluid leaked. The couple rushed to the Thamarassery hospital. The baby's legs had begun protruding. But there was no gynaecologist available at the taluk hospital and the doctor they had consulted earlier couldn't come at the time. She directed them to Government Medical College Hospital.
Bindu claims that nurses at the hospital tightly tied her cervix with cloth, pushing the baby back. It took them another 45 minutes to reach the Medical College. "I had a normal delivery, but the baby didn't cry or breathe properly due to brain damage caused by prolonged suspension of blood circulation," Bindu explained.
After four months in the ventilator, the infant passed away early Monday morning. As the parents couldn't transport the body to their native place Puthuppadi, an ambulance arranged by the Medical College took the body to a burial ground in Mavoor, a nearby location.
Although Bindu filed complaints with the Health Minister, rural police SP, Thamarassery police DySP, MLA, and others, there has been no proper response. Thamarassery police officials requested Bindu to provide a statement despite her inability to travel due to her baby's condition. Now, she intends to directly approach the court seeking justice. The couple, facing a financial crisis due to their inability to work for the past four months, is demanding compensation.
According to taluk hospital authorities, an internal probe team has already confirmed that it was not a case of medical negligence.