After a high-level BMC inquiry report nailed three doctors for botched up eye surgeries of seven patients, three of whom lost their vision completely, at the civic-run HBT Trauma Care Hospital in Jogeshwari last month, doctors associations have come out in defence of the three doctors.

They alleged that the civic officials are protecting their own employees and the honorary doctor of the hospital, Dr Arun Chaudhary, the operating surgeon, and two postgraduate resident doctors, Dr Basir and Dr Kacha, are being made scapegoats.

During post-operative care, the patients were found to have bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which is usually found in hospital-acquired infections. The inquiry report held poor sterilization of medical equipment responsible for it.

The Bombay Ophthalmologist Association stated that this did not imply negligence on part of the doctors. It stated that sterilization of instruments is the duty of the hospital staff employed for this purpose, which includes the nursing staff and ward boys. This is not done or overseen by the doctors. No doctor will use the instruments if they know that they are not sterilized. It argued that an honorary doctor has little control over sterilization of equipment used in operation theatres.

The Association of Medical Consultants called the termination of Dr Chaudharys service as unfair. It held systemic failure accountable, and said that poor monitoring of the sterilization procedure led to post-operative complications in the patients.

Dr Chaudhary said that he did not know how the probe panel came to the conclusion that he, Dr Basir and Dr Kacha were responsible. It is the duty of the nurse in-charge to check whether all the instruments have been sterilized. A doctor works on the assumption that this procedure is followed strictly.