A 46-year-old woman from Bengaluru got compensation of Rs 5 lakh, twenty years after surgeons left a 3.2cm needle in her spine during a failed surgery. This negligence caused her excruciating abdominal pain, backache, and six years of trauma.

The Karnataka State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has ordered Deepak Hospital on Kanakapura Road and two doctors to compensate Padmavathi, a resident of Jayanagar, with Rs 50,000 for litigation costs. Additionally, it has instructed New India Assurance Co Ltd, the insurer that provided coverage to the hospital for professional and medical negligence, to pay the compensation.

On September 29, 2004, Padmavathi underwent hernia surgery at Deepak Hospital, during which doctors also removed her appendix. Despite undergoing surgery, she suffered from severe stomach pain and backache for several years, necessitating her readmission to the hospital twice thereafter.

In 2010, another hospital scan revealed a foreign body located between her stomach and backbone. Subsequently, a surgical procedure at a third hospital removed a 3.2cm surgical needle that had lodged in her vertebral column. The following year, she filed a complaint with the consumer forum.

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Deepak Hospital and the two treating doctors claimed that Padmavathi’s complaint was fabricated and should be dismissed. They also raised questions about the seven-year delay in her filing the complaint.

After reviewing the arguments from all parties, the consumer forum determined that the complainant had established medical negligence by Deepak Hospital and the two doctors, Dr. Shivakumar and Dr. HN Nagaraj. The forum held Deepak Hospital, Dr. Shivakumar, and Dr. HN Nagaraj responsible for paying the compensation and directed the insurer to pay Rs 5 lakh.

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