A bench of Justices from the Supreme Court, Hemant Gupta and V Ramasubramanian stated that the hospital or the doctors cannot be always blamed for negligence resulting in the patient’s death.

Previously, the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission had held Bombay Hospital & Medical Research Centre and its doctors responsible for medical negligence for death of a patient and ordered a compensation of Rs 14 lakh to the patients family.  In response to this order the bench further said that doctors cannot be blames for delay in conducting some medical test, as a machine can become non-functional due to different various mechanical, electrical and electronic factors which are beyond the human control.

It further stated that the non-availability of an emergency operation theatre during the period when surgeries were being performed on other patients was not a valid reason to hold the Hospital negligent. In the Bombay Hospital & Medical Research Centre case the patient was already in serious condition impending gangrene before admission to the hospital and his death after surgery and re-exploration was not a case of medical negligence by doctors or the hospital.

The court said that it might be difficult for the family to cope with the loss of their loved one but there was no proof of any negligence as a team of specialist doctors were consistently monitoring and attending the patient. Doctors can only try their best to provide the best treatment to the patient but cannot assure life to his patient.

Source: ET Healthworld