Facing severe flak over a shocking incident of 14 persons losing their vision in one eye cataract surgeries conducted at the Washim district civil hospital last month, the Maharashtra Government has suspended five employees, comprising an ophthalmic surgeon, medical superintendent and three ophthalmologists, of the Washim district hospital.
The incident came to light when 22 patients were brought to the State-run JJ Hospital in Mumbai, after they complained of pain, swelling in the eye and loss of vision 72 hours after they underwent cataract surgeries at the Washim district civil hospital.
While 14 patients lost vision in one eye after their cataract surgeries, eight others are in a critical condition at the JJ Hospital, where the doctors apprehended that they too might become partially blind.
Attributing the condition the patients undergoing cataract surgeries found themselves into the medical negligence, Dean of JJ Hospital Dr TP lahane said: “We have so far been able to restore vision to just three patients. It is a clear case of negligence on the part of the operating team”.
Preliminary inquiries have revealed that the surgical tools used by the doctors at the Washim hospital in their surgeries had not been sterilised properly. The eye swabs used at the hospital contained infectious bacteria, contracted due to unclean medical equipment.
Dr Satish Pawar, Director of Medical Education and Research (DMER), said that the Washim district hospital erred in referring the patients to the Akola Medical College. “The district hospital authorities should have sent the patients to hospitals in Mumbai and Pune which are better equipped to handle such cases. If they had sent patients to the hospitals to hospitals of Mumbai and Pune, it would have helped save the patients’ vision and avert tragedy. After we came to know of the incident, we brought them by ambulance to Mumbai,” Dr Pawar said.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Health Minister Deepak Sawant has suspended five employees — an ophthalmic surgeon, medical superintendent and three ophthalmologists — of the Washim district civil hospital, pending an inquiry into the alleged medical negligence.