Keonjhar: Medical negligence reached new height after doctor of Keonjhar district headquarters hospital (DHH) operated on a healthy ankle of a woman instead of the injured one during a surgical procedure, reports said.
Now, the woman, Mita Rani Jena of Khadbali village under Anandapur block in this district has been left in pain for life. The wrong operation has only added to the woes of the poor woman who is now unable to walk by herself.
She has to seek the support of family members to walk. This has not only put her in trouble, but her whole family together as she earned a living by doing odd jobs for the family.
According to family members, Mita Rani had been suffering from intense left feet pain after which her husband Trilochan Jena took her for a medical check-up. After inspecting the patient’s condition, the doctor in the DHH said that she had infected wound on her left leg that needed surgery.
However, Mita and her family members were met with a rude shock when they realized that the hospital staff had operated on her right side instead of the left one. In addition to that, the doctors have also operated on her left leg after realizing their mistake, thus leaving both her confined to a wheel chair.
“The staff in the dressing room was dozing and I do not know what happened after he administered an injection. Later, I found that operation was conducted on my right leg instead of the left,” patient Mitarani Jena said.
“She had wound on her left leg. But, when they brought her out of the surgery ward, we noticed that they had operated on the right leg,” her husband said.
Trilochan Jena alleged that the hospital authorities were shockingly nonchalant about the entire episode.
“When, I questioned the doctor about the wrong operation, they said, not to worry and took her again and operated her again on the leg leg. Now, she cannot walk on either of the legs,” he added.
Claiming criminal negligence and apathy on part of the hospital authorities, the woman’s mother said: “Several tests were conducted before the surgery, and they had even market the leg with a marker. What made them operate on the wrong leg, then?”
They are trying to shrug off responsibility and giving us false reasons, she added.
On the other hand, the Medical Officer In-charge of Anandapur Sub-Divisional Hospital, Krushna Chandra Das feigned ignorance about the incident. “I don’t have any knowledge of such allegations,” he said.
Tension gripped the hospital premises after the incident as locals opposed and criticised the careless act of the doctor. The hospital authorities have refused to comment on the matter.
PNN