Elderly patient succumbs after falling from cot at Thiruvananthapuram government medical college hospital

The death of an 87-year-old patient, two days after he fell off a cot in one of the general wards at Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, has triggered allegations of medical negligence as well as renewed conversations on patient safety protocols in public hospitals.

The patient, Sukumara Pillai of Chadayamangalam, who had suffered a stroke, had been referred from Kollam Government Medical College to the MCH here. He was admitted to ward 28 at MCH on August 26 and was allowed two companions, his son and his sister, according to MCH authorities.

While under treatment, on August 29, the patient fell off the cot and sustained injuries on the forehead and face, which were attended to by the doctors. On Monday, following his death, his family members alleged that he was not given appropriate care after his fall and alleged that negligence in care had led to the patient’s death.

MCH authorities however denied that there was any negligence in care and said that the patient was cared for. They said that the patient’s family had decided to raise the allegation after the treating doctor refused to give in to the family’s demand that the body be released without a postmortem.

The Superintendent of MCH, C.G. Jayachandran, said that the patient had fallen off the cot while his son was acting as the caregiver in the hospital.

“The patient was not left unattended and had two caregivers with him. He was not delirious nor was he a psychiatric patient,” he said.

The issue of patent safety had been raised earlier also, when in June a 62-year-old patient with altered sensorium, who had fallen off the hospital cot, had died later.

It had been pointed out that hospital cots with protective side rails were necessary to maintain patient safety, especially in large public hospitals where nursing staff shortage was acute.

However, MCH authorities said that the hospital did not have an adequate number of cots with protective side rails. In every ward not more than five or six cots with side rails were available and these were generally reserved for patients who have no caregivers, or those with psychiatric medications, head injuries or those who are delirious.

“We just do not have enough cots with side rails to provide to all elderly patients,”MCH authorities said.

The body was released in the evening after postmortem and the report is awaited.