Following an appeal moved at the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum seeking enhancement of compensation for medical negligence by Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, the State Commission has modified the district forum order and directed the hospital to pay the complainant ₹10 lakh.
The directions came when a city resident approached the consumer panel seeking enhancement of compensation of ₹1 lakh that the district forum had ordered for medical negligence by the hospital.
Qualitative change
The State commission while enhancing the compensation amount observed, “This may serve the purpose of bringing about a qualitative change in the attitude of the hospitals in providing service. Human touch is necessary; that is their code of conduct; that is their duty and that is what is required to be implemented.”
It was alleged that the complainant’s 24-year-old daughter had lost her life due to medical negligence.
“The allegation of the complainant is that even in the ICU, the daughter of the complainant was treated recklessly and negligently. The attitude of technicians, doctors and other staff of the hospital was quite rude and unprofessional,” the consumer panel observed while looking into the complaint.
Besides this, it was alleged that despite the complainant raising the “dereliction of services” with the authorities concerned, “none of them paid any attention and kept on assuring that these types of misconduct would not repeat”.
While deciding on the compensation, the panel observed, “The patient was a 24-year-old girl…she had before her entire life and career. Further, the complainant and his family were subjected to mental agony. These factors would clearly show that the compensation awarded [by the lower court] is too meagre for the suffering caused.”
