Wrong foot operated: MCI lets off doctor as he was absent from operation theatre
Dr Ashwini Maichand was involved in the operational planning only and did not know the change in side for the operation, the MCI said.
The Medical Council of India (MCI) has revoked an order by the Delhi medical council against one of the two doctors whose names had been removed from state medical register for six months after they negligently operated on the wrong leg of a patient.
24-year-old Ravi Rai had been brought to a private hospital in Delhi on June 19 after falling from a staircase. He had a fracture on his right leg, but the doctors had placed screws in the left ankle instead.
Following this, the two doctors Ashwini Maichand and Rahul Kakran were sacked from the hospital and their names were struck off the state medical register for six months, which meant they cannot practice medicine in the state for the period.
However, the MCI let off Dr Maichand, stating that he was absent on the day of the operation.
“Dr Maichand was involved in the operational planning only. Being absent personally, he was in no position to know that the decision to operate on the right side was changed and the left side operation was done,” the national body said.
The committee maintained the punishment of Dr Kakran whose name is still off the state medical register. He has filed a petition in high court against the decision.
The affected family has also appealed the high court, demanding action against Dr Maichand and higher sentence for Dr Kakran.
“My son was admitted under Dr Maichand. The fees we paid went to him. Then why was he not inside the OT? And if he could not be present, why was it not communicated to us? Also, the doctor who did operate on our son had never visited him in the ward. If he had, such a mistake would not have been made. We have been cheated,” said Ramkaran Rai, Ravi’s father.
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