Vashi man dies after alleged expired saline dose; NMMC suspends two nurses

NAVI MUMBAI: The 50-year-old Vashi resident who was allegedly administered expired intravenous saline at the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) Hospital in Vashi died at Hiranandani Fortis Hospital on Thursday morning while undergoing treatment

NAVI MUMBAI: The 50-year-old Vashi resident who was allegedly administered expired intravenous saline at the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) Hospital in Vashi died at Hiranandani Fortis Hospital on Thursday morning while undergoing treatment. The civic body has suspended two nurses in connection with the incident, NMMC medical officer of health Dr Rajesh Mhatre confirmed.

Gopiram Bhivaji Khadse had been admitted to the NMMC hospital on August 31 with fever, dizziness and weakness. He was subsequently diagnosed with dengue and falciparum malaria. As his condition deteriorated, he was shifted on September 1 to Hiranandani Fortis Hospital under the NMMC quota, where he was placed on ventilator, oxygen and other supportive care. He died on Thursday morning.

Following his death, Khadse’s relatives and activists staged a protest outside the Vashi civic hospital, demanding action against those responsible, compensation for the family and a government job for one family member. The family has alleged medical negligence in the treatment of Khadse.

NMMC medical superintendent Dr Ravindra Mhatre said the post-mortem process had been initiated and that further action would depend on the findings of the inquiry committee.

Khadse’s elder son Vijay alleged that his father initially received regular saline before another bottle was administered to address his weakness. According to him, his father developed severe symptoms soon after the second infusion. “Within moments of the infusion, severe side effects started in his body, he suffered intense itching, hives, his body turned red, and he developed a very high fever that left his body freezing cold. I ran to the doctors nearly ten times, pleading with them to examine him, but they completely ignored us,” Vijay said.

Vijay alleged that despite repeatedly alerting the duty doctor, the saline bottle was not checked. He said he eventually picked up the bottle himself and examined it. “I picked up the saline bottle myself and saw the expiry date. It had expired in July, but it was administered to him on August 31,” he said.

The family also showed a photograph of the bottle to a nurse, who, Vijay alleged, acknowledged the error. He said Khadse was subsequently shifted to the ICU after the family alerted nursing staff and officials. Doctors at Fortis allegedly told the family that they could not guarantee his survival as he had arrived in a critical condition.

NMMC health committee chairman Dr Jayaji Nath had earlier said Khadse was diabetic and hypertensive, while also testing positive for dengue and falciparum malaria. He said it could not be conclusively established at that stage that Khadse’s deterioration was caused by the alleged administration of expired saline. However, Nath said the alleged lapse was serious and warranted action if established.

“This kind of negligence of administering expired medicine or intravenous saline/injections to a patient should never happen. Whoever is found guilty in this, whether it is the storekeeper or the hospital staff who administered it without checking, every doctor is supposed to check the expiry date and condition,” Nath said.

“They should also inspect whether it has been shaken or if there is any fungus. Sometimes old stock accumulates fungus. Normally, it is inspected before administration, so how was expired saline administered? Appropriate action will certainly be taken against those responsible,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) submitted a memorandum to the civic authorities seeking an impartial inquiry and strict action against those found responsible.

Navi Mumbai city president Gajanan Kale and Vashi division secretary Sandesh G Khambe sought verification of the saline’s batch number, expiry date, manufacturer and procurement details. The memorandum also called for scrutiny of the hospital’s stock records and Khadse’s case papers, along with details of the doctor who ordered the saline and the staffer who administered it. The MNS further sought preservation of CCTV footage from the hospital to aid the inquiry.