All private medical and allied medical facilities, including allopathic, homeopathic and ayurvedic clinics, laboratories and physiotherapists struck work on Monday to protest against angry reactions of people after the death Shakunthala, vice-president of Sarapady Gram Panchayat last month.
Emergency cases were also not attended to, said to Sureshchandra Shetty, president of Indian Medical Association (IMA), Bantwal.
A pregnant Shakunthala (32), resident of Kokala, was referred by Saraswathi Hospital, Bantwal, to Father Muller Hospital. She died on her way to hospital because of childbirth complications.
The people alleged medical negligence for her death, and used derogatory words against the doctors of during a public protest.
Inquiry on
Shivakumar, District Health Officer (DHO), said the result of an inquiry by a senior officer of the Health Department into the death of Shakunthala will be known in two to three days.
He said, “Investigation is on. I have sent my senior officer. What exactly happened will be known in two to three days.” Dr. Shetty said it is not possible to say if the doctor was negligent without finding out the cause of death and that a mob cannot decide whether the doctor was negligent or not.
“Who gave them the authority? A mob can’t be prosecutor, judge and punisher,” he said.
‘Issue politicised’
An expert medical committee, which nobody can influence and whose decision is final, has to say whether there was negligence or not. He said the issue of the death is being politicised because she was a political representative and elections are round the corner. People were abusing doctors without finding out if there was a case of negligence by the doctor. When patients die in government hospitals, no one raises questions, he said.
