Baby dies due to doc’s ‘negligence’

A 14-month-old male child died at New Delhi’s Kalawati Saran Children’s hospital, allegedly due to the negligence of his doctor. Rhythma Kaul reports.

A 14-month-old male child died at New Delhi’s Kalawati Saran Children’s hospital late on Monday, allegedly due to the negligence of his doctor.

HT Image

Vikas Kumar was admitted to hospital for a swelling in his foot on June 25. According to his parents, the treating doctor— a senior paediatrician— did not pay proper attention to their son.

“We kept asking him about the disease and the line of treatment, but he told us nothing,” said Mahesh Kumar, Vikas’ father. “After our son was declared dead, we asked him for the papers, but he refused to even show them to us.”

The doctor in question refused to comment and deflected all queries to the hospital’s director Dr G.K. Sharma, who is on leave.

Dr P. D’Souza, officiating as director, was too busy to comment. “I can’t talk, I am too busy,” she told HT.

The baby’s family, however, alleged the hospital was in a state of neglect and a good number of children die there every day for want of proper treatment. They reportedly created a huge ruckus on the hospital premises and other parents whose children were admitted in the hospital also joined them on Monday night.

They claimed the hospital administration refused to even lend them a hearing in this regard.

“We don’t know what killed our son,” said Kumar.