Kin allege medical negligence after 23-yr-old succumbs to bicycle-fall injuries

Shipra Singh (inset) succumbed to the grievous head injuries she suffered in a bicycle fall

A 23-year-old working with a health insurance company died on Tuesday after allegedly failing to receive proper treatment for the grievous injuries she had sustained in a bicycle fall on May 13. Her family members have lodged a complaint with the Kasturba Marg police against Borivli's Karuna hospital for medical negligence, alleging that doctors didn't treat her properly just because they were unable to pay the deposit amount of Rs 2 lakh during admission.

The deceased has been identified as Shipra Singh, a resident of Konkani Pada, Dahisar East, working at ICICI Lombard's health insurance section. The incident happened at Kanheri Caves in Sanjay Gandhi National Park during a picnic she had gone on with her colleagues.

Her sister Manisha Singh and other family members have lodged a complaint against the hospital

Money matters
According to the deceased's elder sister Manisha, Shipra had gone on a cycling trek, and while coming down the slope, she lost her balance and fell on the rocks littering the path, suffering serious head injuries. Her friends first took her to a nearby hospital, from where she was shifted to Karuna hospital.

Doctor's version
Shipra's cousin Chandrashekhar alleged that the hospital demanded Rs 2 lakh as a deposit, and when they informed authorities where she worked, the latter said they didn't have a tie-up with ICICI Lombard. Chandrashekhar added that they didn't give her the proper treatment and, yet, demanded R1.87 lakh as expenses, after which the family paid R1.30 lakh and shifted her to Apex hospital on May 14. She was operated on there but died during treatment.

"The CMO explained to the family members all the costs that would be incurred and, only after their consent and signature on the form, admitted her. However, her haemoglobin count was dangerously low, which made conducting a craniotomy too risky. She was intubated and stabilised and taken to the OT, where a neurosurgeon performed a tracheotomy, while a plastic surgeon fixed the injuries she had sustained on the face and lips," said Dr R M Bhatnagar, medical director at Karuna hospital.

"Life-saving measures helped to resuscitate the patient. She was put on a ventilator in a high-dependency unit." He added, "When her condition didn't improve, a decompressive craniotomy was advised, but her relatives decided to transfer her to a government hospital due to financial constraints. We gave the best treatment possible; it was her relatives' decision to shift her, at their own risk."

Rs 1.3 lakh
Amount the family paid as expenses

Also read: Medical apathy! Husband carries pregnant woman to hospital on cot

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates