Pregnant Woman Dies After Pune Hospital Allegedly Refuses Admission, Probe On
A pregnant woman has died after a hospital in Pune allegedly denied her admission due to non-payment of an advance deposit of Rs 10 lakh, a charge rejected by the hospital administration.
The incident reportedly took place on March 28 at the Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered a probe.
The woman, Tanisha Bhise, wife of BJP leader Amit Gorkhe's personal assistant Sushant Bhise, died after allegedly giving birth to twin girls at another city-based hospital the next day.
Mr Bhise claimed he requested the hospital administration that he would pay Rs 2.5 lakh to start the treatment, but they ignored his requests. As her labor pain increased and health deteriorated, Mr Bhise said he took her to a hospital about 25 kilometers away in a private car. Her health, however, worsened, and she died after giving birth to twin girls at the hospital.
What Hospital Said
An internal inquiry report of the Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital said the allegations were "misleading". The woman's pregnancy was in the high-risk category, and her two underweight foetuses of seven months, coupled with a history of old ailment, required Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) treatment for at least two months, the inquiry report by a four-member committee said.
The treatment required Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh and the family was advised that in case of lack of funds, they could admit the patient to the government-run Sassoon General Hospital for a complicated surgery, the hospital said.
The committee claimed that when the woman's relatives contacted Dr Dhananjay Kelkar (Medical Director), he had advised them to pay as much as they could, but they did not follow his advice.
It also said that as per senior gynaecologists, the woman's twin pregnancy was dangerous.
"Despite the fact that the hospital was known to the family of the deceased, it did not come to the hospital to conduct the necessary antenatal care (ANC) checkups in the last six months. The said complaint seems to have been made out of anger over the advance being demanded and out of frustration due to the death of the patient," the report said.
It also said Ms Bhise had been visiting the hospital since 2020 for treatment and medical advice.
"In 2023, she was advised to go for adoption as the possibility of a safe pregnancy and delivery was difficult. As per the common practice of hospitals, the ANC of a pregnant woman should be done at least thrice to ensure the safety of the foetus and the mother. But (in this case) the said procedure was not done in the hospital," the report said.
On March 15, the woman and her family met Dr Sushrut Ghaisas of the hospital, who informed them about the high-risk nature of the pregnancy and asked her to return for weekly checkups. Accordingly, she was expected on March 22, but did not turn up, the report said.
On March 28, the woman, her husband, and other relatives came to Dr Ghaisas's outpatient department (OPD), but the patient did not visit the emergency or labour room that day, it added.
"At the OPD, Dr Ghaisas conducted her medical check up. She was normal and did not require any sort of emergency treatment. However, since the pregnancy was of high-risk category, she was advised to get admitted for medical observation," it said.
The family was informed about the caesarean section procedure and doctors from the NICU were introduced to the family as two underweight foetuses of seven months, coupled with history of old ailment, required NICU treatment for at least two to two-and-a-half months," the report said, adding that the relatives were informed about an estimated expense of Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.
"The family members asked us to start the treatment and stated that they would try to arrange the money. The relatives then called medical director Dr Kelkar and apprised him of their difficulty in arranging the funds. Dr Kelkar then told them to pay as much as they could and also assured them that he would speak to Dr Ghaisas. But later Dr Kelkar was informed by Dr Ghaisas that the patient left without informing the hospital," the report said.
It also mentioned that Dr Ghaisas assumed the family was busy arranging the funds.
"The woman's husband was even given the advice that even if they failed to arrange the money, they could take the patient to the (government-run) Sassoon General Hospital as the complicated surgery can be done and the premature babies can be tended properly in the NICU there," the report said.
Devendra Fadnavis Launches Probe
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis last week ordered the formation of a committee under the Pune-based Joint Commissioner of Charity to inquire into the woman's death.
"The family of the deceased met me, and I have assured them that a committee has been formed to probe the incident. I told them that strict action would be taken against those found responsible," he told reporters Saturday after the Bhise family met him in Pune.
The state government is working on SOPs (standard operating procedure) to avoid such incidents in the future and the Charity Commissioner Office will be given a memorandum about it," the senior BJP leader added.
(With agency inputs)
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