India

17 Persons Suffer From Vision Loss After Cataract Surgery In Trust-Run Hospital, Gujarat High Court Takes Suo Moto Cognisance

The Gujarat High Court Wednesday took suo motu cognizance of a media report about 17 persons complaining of partial or complete loss of vision after undergoing cataract surgery at a trust-run hospital in Ahmedabad district, calling the incident “glaring and deplorable”.

The division bench of Justices AS Supehia and Vimal K Vyas issued notices to the secretary of state health and family welfare department and superintendent of police of Ahmedabad Rural, directing them to file a preliminary report by February 7.

“We take suo motu cognizance of the news article published on January 17 since it raises an issue of grave concern which has a direct impact on the well-being of elderly patients who have suffered vision loss,” Justice Supehia of the division bench said.

“It is also essential to know whether a substandard drug was issued while undertaking the surgery or there was lack of facility or maintenance of medical protocols which are necessary to observe before undertaking any eye surgery,” he said.

The court said the news report does not refer to any criminal complaint filed by the state authorities against the erring medical personnel or any other staff responsible for the incident.

“The incident requires a thorough and sincere investigation for fixing the liability of the erring persons and also to pay suitable compensation to the victims who have ultimately lost their vision,” the court said.

It directed the registry to register the news article as a suo motu writ petition and issue notice to the state Health and Family Welfare Department as well as the SP (Ahmedabad rural).

The court said that the registry shall place the matter before the court of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal during the next date of hearing (February 7).

As many as 17 persons have complained of partial or complete loss of vision after undergoing cataract surgery at a trust-run hospital in Ahmedabad district, prompting authorities to order a probe.

The Gujarat health and family welfare department has formed a nine-member expert committee to conduct an inquiry and also asked the eye hospital at Mandal village not to perform any more cataract surgeries until further orders.

The matter came to light after five persons who underwent surgery at the Ramanand Eye Hospital at Mandal on January 10 were referred to the ophthalmology department at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital on Monday for treatment, he said.

Officials said that expert doctors were roped in at Ahmedabad and Mandal-based hospitals to treat the affected patients and conduct an inquiry.

The hospital at Mandal had performed nearly 100 cataract surgeries this month, an official had said earlier, adding that a camp had been set up at Viramgam town to screen all these patients for complications.

PTI

Also Read: Next Republican Debate Cancelled: Haley Says To Participate Only If Trump Does

Bharat Express English

Recent Posts

UPPSC Announces Single-Day PCS (Preliminary) Exam After CM Yogi’s Intervention

In response to demands from competitive exam candidates, the UPPSC announced a major decision to…

9 hours ago

UPPSC Announces Key Changes To Exam Schedule; PCS Prelims Unchanged, RO/ARO Exams Delayed

 Addressing the concerns of exam aspirants, the UPPSC announced a major change in its examination…

9 hours ago

PM Modi Arrives In Panvel, Maharashtra, Amidst Devotional Welcome

PM Modi received a warm welcome in Panvel, Maharashtra, from the people of Iskcon, with…

11 hours ago

Kiren Rijiju Launches Book On Waqf Reform, Calls Tt A New Era For Minority Welfare

Kiren Rijiju unveiled a new book titled Waqf Bill 2024: Respect to Islam and Gift…

12 hours ago

Indian Stock Market Extends Losing Streak As Key Sectors Face Selling Pressure

On Thursday, Indian stocks declined for the sixth straight day, with selling in PSU banks,…

15 hours ago

Supreme Court To Address Alarming Rise In Delhi Air Pollution On Monday

Supreme Court will convene to address Delhi’s escalating air pollution crisis, following concerns raised by…

17 hours ago