Wrong Diagnosis Does Not Amount To Medical Negligence, Says SC
Published on 26 Feb 2019 by Shivi
The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal filed by a man against the order of National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission which dismissed his complaint alleging medical negligence on the part of a hospital in the death of his wife.
We have sympathy for the appellant, but sympathy cannot translate into a legal remedy, said the bench comprising of Justice L. Nageswara Rao and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul while upholding the NCDRC order which had held that the case 'would at best be a case of the wrong diagnosis, if that; it certainly cannot be called medical negligence'.
In his complaint, Vinod Jain had alleged that the following acts and omissions on part of the hospital constituted medical negligence: (a) inappropriate and ineffective medication; (b) failure to restart the cannula for IV medication; (c) premature discharge of the deceased despite her condition warranting treatment in the ICU; (d) oral administration of Polypod antibiotic, despite her critical condition, which actually required intravenous administration of the medicine. Though the state commission allowed his complaint and ordered a compensation of Rs.15 lakh, the national commission had set it aside.
The Apex Court bench, while considering his appeal, discussed the legal principles which would apply in cases of medical negligence (Bolam Test, Kusum Sharma & Ors. v. Batra Hospital & Medical Research Centre and Jacob Mathew v. State of Punjab). According to the complainant, in the early hours on the next day, on 16.10.2011, the cannula stopped functioning and instead of re-cannulating the patient, oral administration of the antibiotic Polypod was found justified. It is this aspect, which according to the appellant, amounts to medical negligence.
READ: Medical Negligence Laws In India
The bench agreed with approach adopted by the NCDRC in dealing with this contention and said: "The explanation offered by respondent No.2-Doctor was that when he attended the patient at 11:00 a.m. on 16.10.2011, he found that the drip 10 had been disconnected, on account of all peripheral veins being blocked due to past chemotherapies, and that the drip had been stopped, the night before itself, at the instance of the appellant. Taking into consideration the fact that the patient was normal, afebrile, well-hydrated and displayed normal vitals, the oral administration of the tablet was prescribed.
This, according to the NCDRC was the professional and medical assessment by respondent No.2-Doctor, arrived at on the basis of a medical condition of the patient, and could not constitute medical negligence" The court further observed: "In the perception of the doctor, the increase in lymphocytes in the blood count was the result of the patient displaying an improved immune response to the infection. It is in this context that the NCDRC opined that at best, it could be categorised as a possible case of the wrong diagnosis. In our opinion, the approach adopted by the NCDRC cannot be said to be faulty, while dealing with the role of the State Commission, which granted damages on a premise that respondent No.2-Doctor could have pursued an alternative mode of treatment. Such a course of action, as a super-appellate medical authority, could not have been performed by the State Commission. There was no evidence to show any unexplained deviation from standard protocol."
The court, while dismissing the appeal, observed that it appreciates the pain of the appellant, but then, that by itself cannot be a cause for awarding damages for the passing away of his wife.
Related News
Browse through other related Blogs posts here
Top Legal Queries
Get answers from the best experts within minutes!
Most Consulted Advocates
Choose from our most consulted lawyers across India and get instant legal advice.
Advocate Nishant Mehrotra
- Civil Lines, Allahabad
- 15+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 4.8
Advocate Nishant Mehrotra practices at Allahabad High Court. He enrolled with the Bar Council of Uttar Pradesh in 2004. He is a member of the Allahabad High Court Bar Association. Advocate Nishant Mehrotra, son of Hon'ble Justice S.P.Mehrotra, did his five year integrated law course from ILS Law College, Pune (B.S.L., LL.B.), University of Pune and Diploma in Consumer Protection Laws from the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS). He has been practicing as an advocate in the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad as well as in the subordinate courts and tribunals. He has worked with the Mulla & Mullas (Leading Law firm at Bombay) & also with various renowned lawyers of District Court at Pune and Allahabad. He has also worked with the Hon’ble Mr. Justice Vikram Nath (as he then was) and has worked with Hon’ble Mr. Justice M. K. Gupta (as he then was). He has been counsel for various organisations including Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti, Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan, Allahabad Bank, UP Project Co. Ltd, Employee's Provident Fund, LH Sugar Mills, Provogue, Oriflame India Ltd., UP Steels, The Oriental Insurance Company Ltd, National Insurance Company Ltd, Shriram General Insurance Company Ltd, United India Insurance Company Ltd, Punjab National Bank, Spencer, Shriram Transport Finance Co., Hinduja Finance Co., Shriram City and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd. His practice areas are various field of civil laws, criminal laws, medical negligence matters, family law, consumer cases, landlord/tenant matters, revenue related matters, arbitration matters, matrimonial related matters, taxation matters and drafting and vetting of various agreements and documents. He has experience of 13+ years in the legal profession and providing services. He provides services in fair and transparent manner with result oriented approach. He is very supportive and friendly to his clients both professionally and ethically.
Read More
Advocate Bhawesh Chaudhary
- VIP road, Mohali
- 7+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Bhawesh Chaudhary is a Zirakpur (Mohali) based lawyer and has been practising law since 2012. He has been providing legal and advisory services as an independent lawyer. Advocate Bhawesh Chaudhary got enrolled with the Bar Council in the year 2012. He holds extensive experience in working in the most complex areas of Divorce, Criminal Defence, Consumer Protection, Property Real Estate Law, Healthcare Law and General Legal. He holds experience in efficiently handling varied cases and often makes appearances across Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) Chandigarh, Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) Chandigarh, Debts Recovery Tribunal (DRT) Chandigarh, District Court Chandigarh, District Court Mohali, District Court Panchkula, Punjab and Haryana High Court and Supreme Court Of India, State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission Chandigarh and District Consumer Forum Mohali. He avidly believes in achieving the objectives of his client with compassion and accurate advocacy. Advocate Bhawesh Chaudhary is known for providing timely and responsive legal services for his clients by providing them with the most expeditious legal course of action.
Read More
Advocate Praveen Rathi
- Ratanlal Plot, Akola
- 13+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Praveen Rathi is a Akola based lawyer and has been practising law since 2006. He has been providing legal and advisory services as an independent lawyer. Advocate Praveen Rathi got enrolled with the Bar Council in the year 2006. He holds extensive experience in working in the most complex areas of Civil Litigation, Consumer Protection, Corporate Law and Medical Negligence. He holds experience in efficiently handling varied cases and often makes appearances across District Court Akola. He avidly believes in achieving the objectives of his client with compassion and accurate advocacy. Advocate Praveen Rathi is known for providing timely and responsive legal services for his clients by providing them with the most expeditious legal course of action.
Read MoreTop Consulted Advocates
Choose from our most consulted lawyers across India and get instant legal advice.
Advocate Nishant Mehrotra
- Allahabad
- 15+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 4.8
Advocate Bhawesh Chaudhary
- Mohali
- 7+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Praveen Rathi
- Akola
- 13+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Rohit Sharma
- Chandigarh
- 18+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Vikash Choudhary
- Pali
- 5+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Sushma Sharma
- Aligarh
- 27+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Shyamsunder Mishra
- Sundargarh
- 31+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Gurvinder Singh
- Fatehabad
- 2+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
Advocate Shivendu Tripathi
- Lucknow
- 2+ Years Of Experience
- User Rating 0.0
