In Kochi, February 20 – A surgical instrument, identified as an artery forceps, was found inside the abdomen of a woman from Punnapra, five years after she underwent surgery at Alappuzha Medical College, according to relatives.
Usha Joseph was admitted to a private hospital in Kochi on Friday for a procedure to remove the instrument.
According to her relatives, Usha underwent surgery at the medical college in May 2021 to remove a uterine fibroid.
However, after the surgery, she experienced recurring abdominal pain, her son Shibin told reporters.
Despite multiple visits to doctors at the same hospital, the cause of the pain could not be identified, he alleged.
Recently, Usha consulted a doctor who suspected a kidney stone and advised an X-ray examination.
Shibin said the X-ray reportedly showed the artery forceps, after which doctors at the medical college offered to remove it the following week.
“However, we decided to seek treatment at a private hospital. The doctors there will perform the scan and locate the exact position and then conduct the surgery,” Shibin said.
He stated that the family wants the instrument removed from his mother’s body as soon as possible and alleges that the doctors at the medical college had said that no compensation would be paid.
“The doctors at the medical college told us that we can file a complaint if we want. We have now decided to file a complaint at the Ambalapuzha police station,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dr. Lalithambika, a retired surgeon at Alappuzha Medical College, who had performed the surgery, told reporters that she did not perform the surgery.
“The surgery was performed just before my retirement, when I was not handling major cases. My name was recorded as the unit chief. Also, the surgery took place during the COVID period, and I was engaged in it,” she said.
She also denied allegations that she took money from patients before the surgery.
“I did not take any money from patients for any surgery. You can ask any patient I attended,” she said.
She said that the instrument found in Usha’s body was a very small size mosquito forceps, not a scissor.
“It is a magnified view in the X-ray. A mosquito forceps is a small surgical tool used to clamp small blood vessels. It should not happen,” she said.
She attributed the error to a system failure in a government hospital.
“Usually, the floor nurse should write down the instruments used for surgery on a board and count them when the procedure is completed. However, in government hospitals, there are no floor nurses and no such practice is followed,” she said.
Lalithambika said that Usha had undergone surgery earlier as well and it needs to be examined whether the instrument remained in the body from that procedure.
“This instrument can remain in the body for as long as 20 to 30 years,” she said.
Health Minister Veena George said that officials who were part of the surgery and are currently in government service will be suspended as part of the inquiry.
According to her, a preliminary inquiry was conducted into the matter and a report was submitted to the Director of Medical Education (DME).
“It is a painful incident that should not have happened. Based on the preliminary inquiry report, the DME has formed an expert committee comprising senior doctors to conduct a detailed inquiry into the incident,” she said.
She said that expert doctors from Kottayam and Thiruvananthapuram Medical Colleges have been deputed to Alappuzha Medical College as part of the inquiry.
“The team is expected to give a detailed report soon. Based on the report, all legal steps will be taken without any leniency. The report will also be forwarded to the police for legal proceedings,” she said.
George said she had spoken to Joseph’s family, who also told her about consulting the concerned doctor at her residence.
“As part of the inquiry, it will also be checked whether such a consultation has happened. The allegation by the family shows that after availing non-practising allowance, they are engaged in medical practice at home,” she said.
Responding to Dr. Lalithambika’s remarks about system failure at government medical colleges, the minister denied the allegation.
“It is a guideline of the WHO that is followed by all hospitals. Government hospitals are operating in accordance with all the guidelines. It is easy to put the blame on the system,” she said.
George said the claim made by Dr. Lalithambika itself amounts to a violation of norms.
“How can a surgery be conducted without a scrub nurse? If such a surgery were to happen, that itself would be a violation. The doctor claimed that she does not remember the patient but is sure she would not conduct the surgery. This itself is suspicious,” George said.
She said such errors would not be tolerated, recalling that a similar incident was reported in 2017.
George said doctors cannot trivialise the incident by claiming that such equipment can remain in the body for a long time.
“A medical board will also be constituted as it happened a few years back, and currently she is admitted to a private hospital,” she added.
