Kozhikode: In a disturbing case of alleged medical negligence reported in the city, a 60-year-old heart patient lost his life at the hands of an unqualified medical practitioner, who had only completed the 12th grade and had been struggling to pass the second year of his MBBS course since 2011. Despite this, he worked as a Resident Medical Officer (RMO) at TMH Hospital in Kottakadavu, Kozhikode.
After gathering evidence that the medical practitioner was a quack who enrolled in a hospital but still failed to complete his medical degree, the Kerala police arrested him under relevant sections of BNS and TMH Hospital dismissed him after acknowledging a lapse in verifying his qualifications.
It was found that the fake doctor was working illegally as an RMO in EDs of various hospitals for years even though he was enrolled in KMCT Hospital to complete his medical studies.
The incident took place on September 23 at 4.30 am when the patient was brought to the emergency department of the hospital with complaints of severe chest pain and breathlessness. However, the man died shortly after reaching the hospital.
Explaining the incident in brief, the son of the deceased patient who is a resident doctor in Chandigarh expressed shock and disbelief when he discovered that the person who treated his father was a fraud.
Taking the matter to social media, the doctor explained the entire incident on 'X'. He said "With a heart full of pain and disbelief, I must share that my father lost his life due to gross medical negligence of TMH Hospital (Kottakadavu) and a fraud doctor who didn’t even have an official MBBS degree. 4:30 AM (23/09/24)- I got the most distressing call of my life from my mom, saying that my dad was having severe angina and breathlessness & was taken to the nearest hospital's ED. I can’t help but regret our decision to take him to this place that failed him so tragically."
Further, he said, "Half an hour later, my brother called me, desperate for answers. No one at the hospital was communicating with them. He handed the phone to the Casualty RMO, "Dr." A, who told me my father was brought in late and that there was little he could do. In that moment, I believed him. I accepted our ill fate, thinking there was nothing more that could have been done. Looking back now, I am filled with regret, anger, and the painful realization that we were misled.
After an agonizing 18-hour journey from Chandigarh to Kozhikode, I finally saw my father's lifeless body. My greatest fear as a doctor became a painful reality — not being able to be there for my parents and care for them when they needed me the most."
After the cremation, he discovered that the RMO who treated his father was someone who hadn’t even finished his MBBS. He found out that person enrolled in 2011 and has still not managed to clear his 2nd-year MBBS exams.
"Digging deep, we found that he has been working illegally as an RMO in EDs of various hospitals for years. All the while he was enrolled in KMCT Hospital, as an MBBS student for 13 years without progressing. The sheer negligence & audacity!" he added.
Continuing to express his frustration, the doctor asked a series of questions that struggled him to get answers. “How could someone so unqualified be in charge of my father’s life? Or anyone’s life?” How could a 2nd-yr MBBS student with such a poor academic record be allowed to manage an emergency department on his own? Is it even legal to hire someone who has only passed 12th grade as an RMO instead of a qualified MBBS doctor?
Criticising the private hospital for endangering the lives of many people by hiring unqualified quack doctors, the doctor asked "What kind of background check did TMH Hospital (Kottakadavu, Kozhikode, Kerala) conduct on this fraudulent doctor? How many more lives, including my father’s, has the hospital endangered by employing someone so unskilled and negligent? How many more lives have to be endangered by illegal “Drs” and money-hungry hospitals before action is taken?"
He accused TMH Hospital of putting profits over lives by hiring unqualified labour at cheap rates in one of the most critical departments. “I will not stop until there is accountability,” he vowed.
Furthermore, he shared “evidence” of the hospital’s alleged negligence on 'X' revealing that his father was not diabetic and no atropine was given for bradycardia and no CPR duration and cycles were mentioned in the prescription.
“I received calls from Kerala Health Minister Veena George, who assured me that strict punishment would be given to those responsible,” he said.
In response to the accusations, the hospital authorities acknowledged their lapse in verifying the person's qualifications and the manager told India Today that the institution had followed its standard procedure by checking the person's medical registration number before hiring him.
"He worked in many hospitals in Kozhikode and Malappuram before joining us. We just checked his medical registration number, and he had worked with bigger hospitals than ours in the past. So we went ahead with the appointment. He was a really good doctor, with patients cancelling their appointments if he was not available. He was well-behaved with patients and highly respected. So there was no scope for doubt," said the hospital authorities.
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