Info Doctcare Services : India's Largest Professional Risk Management Service Provider for Doctors, Hospitals,Nursing Homes & Diagnostic Centers

OFFER Get upto 75% Discount on Premium !! Buy Now

Image
NCDRC Upholds Medical Negligence: Doctor Liable for Forceps Delivery Injuries to Newborn...

Case Brief:
A woman, K. Sreelatha, gave birth via forceps-assisted delivery at Dr. P. Yashodhara’s hospital in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh. The baby suffered scalp crush injuries, necrotizing fasciitis, and brain damage allegedly due to negligent handling. Despite the mother’s request for a C-section due to the baby’s size, the doctor insisted on forceps delivery. The child required prolonged treatment at CHILDS Trust Hospital in Chennai, incurring significant medical costs.

Court’s Order Summary:
The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) affirmed medical negligence but reduced the compensation awarded by the State Commission. The doctor...

Image
Supreme Court : Cheque Bounce Complainant Is 'Victim', Can Appeal Acquittal Without Prior Leave The Supreme Court holds that complainants under Section 138 NI Act qualify as “victims” under CrPC, allowing...

In a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court of India has held that a complainant in a cheque dishonour case under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 qualifies as a ‘victim’ under Section 2(wa) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). This recognition grants such complainants the right to appeal against an acquittal without seeking special leave under Section 378(4) CrPC, by invoking the proviso to Section 372 CrPC directly.

The case arose after the Madras High Court denied leave to appeal an acquittal in a cheque bounce...

Image
Hospital and Doctor Held Guilty of Medical Negligence; Patna Consumer Commission Awards ₹36 Lakh for Retained Stent Post-Surgery...

In the case of Ramesh Kumar Yadav v. Ruban Memorial Hospital & Dr. Singh, the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Patna, awarded ₹35 lakh as compensation and ₹1 lakh as litigation costs to the complainant. The patient underwent a Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (PCNL) surgery in 2012, during which two ureteric stents were inserted. However, the right-sided stent was negligently left inside the body, causing serious medical complications.

Despite repeated follow-ups, the stent was not removed, and the doctor later demanded ₹70,000 for its removal. This negligence led the patient to...

Image
The Karnataka High Court - High Court Quashes Medical Negligence Case Against Doctors for Lack of Expert Opinion...

The Karnataka High Court recently quashed a medical negligence case against three doctors, citing the absence of an expert medical opinion to substantiate the charges. The case originated from a 2014 complaint alleging that the doctors failed to adhere to standard protocols while treating a pregnant woman at Vivekananda Maternity Hospital.

On June 28, 2023, Justice Sachin Shankar Magadum ruled that the police had filed...

Image
Supreme Court Of India quashed the charge of culpable homicide (Section 304, Part 1 of the IPC) against a doctor who gave telephonic instruction to a nurse to administer an...

The Supreme Court held that charging Dr. Mohan under Section 304 Part I IPC (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) for a patient’s death caused after a nurse administered an injection based on his telephonic instructions was legally unsustainable. Instead, the Court ruled that the matter constituted medical negligence, if anything, and should be tried under Section 304A IPC (causing death by negligence).

Key Points:

  • No intent or knowledge was established to justify a culpable homicide charge.

Image
NCDRC : Doctors Not Liable If Treatment Follows Recognized Medical Practice Complaint Dismissed Against Eye Specialists Over Alleged Steroid-Induced Cataract...

Kumari Kritika developed swelling in her right eye and visited Dr. Harish Gupta (OP-1) in 2014. Dr. Gupta referred her to Dr. S.D. Tayal (OP-2), who prescribed Pred-Forte eye drops. Her vision deteriorated over time, and she was later diagnosed with cataracts attributed to prolonged use of Pred-Forte. She alleged medical negligence and filed a complaint

District Forum:
➔ Dismissed the complaint, holding no negligence proven against the doctors.
➔ Found no expert evidence and observed that the patient didn’t follow up as instructed.

State Commission (Appeal):
➔ Allowed the appeal partially.

Image
Supreme Court of India —"We have sympathy for the appellant, but sympathy cannot translate into a legal remedy"—highlights a key principle in judicial reasoning: decisions must be grounded in law...

The Supreme Court's judgment in Vinod Jain v. Santokba Durlabhji Memorial Hospital & Anr. (Civil Appeal No. 2024 of 2019, decided on February 25, 2019) provides a significant interpretation of medical negligence under Indian law. The bench, comprising Justices L. Nageswara Rao and Sanjay Kishan Kaul, upheld the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission's (NCDRC) decision, emphasizing that a wrong diagnosis, in itself, does not constitute medical negligence.

Background of the...

Image
Supreme Court of India - "We, therefore, direct that whenever a complaint is received against a doctor or hospital by the Consumer Fora (whether District, State or National) or by...

Direction by the Supreme Court:

"We, therefore, direct that whenever a complaint is received against a doctor or hospital by the Consumer Fora (whether District, State or National) or by the Criminal Court, then before issuing notice to the doctor or hospital against whom the complaint is made, the Consumer Forum or Criminal Court should first refer the matter to a competent doctor or a committee of doctors specialized in the field relating to which the medical negligence is attributed.

Martin F. D’Souza v. Mohd. Ishfaq, (2009)...

Image
NCDRC has directed Dr. Anirban Chatterjee, a vascular surgeon, and Nightingale Diagnostic & Medicare Centre Pvt. Ltd., Kolkata, to jointly and severally pay ₹ 75 lakh in compensation to a...

The patient, Srimoyee Basu, had been experiencing swelling in her right gluteal region since 2000. Initially diagnosed as neurofibroma, the condition was later identified as an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in 2014. Dr. Chatterjee recommended a vascular embolization procedure, which was performed on September 16, 2015, at Nightingale Hospital. During the procedure, a small amount of N-Butyl...

Image
Section 138, Negotiable Instruments Act – Andhra Pradesh High Court Holds That Lok Adalat Award in Criminal Proceedings for Cheque Dishonour is Executable as a Civil Court Decree....

The Andhra Pradesh High Court has held that an award rendered by a Lok Adalat in a criminal proceeding pertaining to the dishonour of a cheque under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act is amenable to execution before a civil court, by virtue...
                            

Image
The West Bengal State Commission, led by Justice Manojit Mandal, found a doctor guilty of medical negligence and poor service for failing to get the patient's written consent before starting...

The complainant's father consulted the opposite party, a doctor, for treatment of his daughter’s mildly protruding and uneven upper teeth. It was only later that he realized such cases fall under the expertise of orthodontists. Although not qualified as an orthodontist, the doctor initiated the treatment without adhering to the standard protocols required for teeth alignment. The complainant contended that a referral to an orthodontic specialist should have been made, as such professionals typically carry out a detailed diagnostic process, including x-rays and dental impressions, before starting any treatment. A complaint was lodged with the District Commission, which ruled in...

Image
NCDRC Dismisses Medical Negligence Claim Against Kims Al-Shifa Hospital...

The complainant, during the early stages of her second pregnancy, consulted a doctor who assured her of a normal delivery. However, when her due date passed without labor pains, she was admitted to KIMS Al-Shifa Hospital. A labor-inducing drug was administered, allegedly without proper supervision. This caused severe allergic reactions, necessitating an emergency forceps delivery. Following the...

Image
"Supreme Court Orders Surgeon to Compensate Patient ₹3.5 Lakh for Post-Cataract Surgery Infection"...

Background - Bherulal, the complainant, underwent a cataract surgery by Dr. Madhusudan. Post-surgery, he developed severe pain, oozing from the eye, and eventually complete vision loss. Multiple specialists later diagnosed him with endophthalmitis (a severe infection).

Supreme Court’s Findings:

  1. The doctor failed to properly diagnose and treat the infection despite multiple complaints from the patient
  2. No credible evidence proved the patient changed his dressing; the doctor’s records were suspiciously produced late and lacked reliabilit
  3. Expert opinion showed that oozing pus indicated serious infection needing urgent care, which...