Jabalpur Hospital Fire: 3 suspended Doctors appointed to inspect nine Hospitals

Bhopal: Three government doctors who were suspended for lapses in the inspection of a private hospital in Jabalpur were later given the responsibility of inspecting nine other hospitals in the same city. Nearly six months after the inspection was carried out by the doctors, a fire broke out in the New Life Multispecialty Hospital in Jabalpur's Damoh. 

On August 1, a fire broke out at the hospital which killed several patients, attendants and staff, and left eighteen people injured. According to the inspection report prepared by the three doctors in March, no shortcomings were reported from the hospital. In addition to that, they had given sanction to a non-existent blood bank.

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported about the arrest of a doctor-cum-owner of the private hospital in the fire incident. He was one of the six accused booked by the police. The police had said that the hospital prima facie did not have adequate fire extinguishers as per the approved fire plan in the provisional fire NOC. There were no designated exit routes in case of emergency. Besides electrical safety audit was not conducted. 

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However, the inspection carried out following the fire incident revealed that the provisional fire safety No Objection Certificate of the hospital had expired on March 2, two days before the inspection was carried out. Thus the doctors had failed to bring this to notice. The three doctors have been identified as Dr Nishedh Chaudhary, Dr LN Patel (anaesthesiologist at Jabalpur District Hospital) and Dr Kamlesh Verma (Pediatrician at Jabalpur District Hospital). 

The NDTV reports that Dr Kamlesh Verma, who headed the Nursing Home section of the health department in Jabalpur district at the time neither sealed the hospital nor did he put a recommendation to cancel its registration. The lapse in their inspection played a very important role in the fire incident of August 1, said the investigators. The Jabalpur CMHO had proposed the suspension of the three doctors on August 2 with regard to this. 

However, the Chief Medical Health Officer Dr Ratnesh Kurariya included these three doctors in their team of 45 doctors for inspecting 136 other hospitals and nursing homes in Jabalpur despite their reported lapses. This matter was brought to the notice of the Jabalpur bench of the High Court while they were hearing a petition on the fire incident. 

On August 18, the bench of Chief Justice Ravi Malimath and Justice DK Paliwal observed, "It is quite shocking the manner in which the proceedings have been conducted. When orders of suspension are proposed, the same day the very persons are made members of a committee enquire into the issue for which they are being suspended." 

The court further asked the deputy advocate general to file an affidavit of the facts of the case. According to the case file, the three doctors conducted the inspection of nine hospitals (three hospitals by each doctor), including a multi-speciality facility, following which they submitted their report to the department. 

However, justifying the permission given to the three doctors to inspect other hospitals, Joint Director (Health) in Jabalpur district, Dr Sanjay Mishra told NDTV, "The doctors were included in the committee of 45 doctors for inspecting 136 hospitals as there was a shortage of manpower. The inspection exercise started on August 3 and had to be completed in a short span," adding, "The three doctors weren't tasked with inspecting the New Life Multi Specialty Hospital where the killer fire had happened, but were asked to inspect other hospitals, which they did and submitted their report within three days."

The Law Students Association state president Vishal Baghel had filed a petition over the fire incident, reports The New Indian Express. Expressing its displeasure, the bench questioned why an FIR was not filed against the three doctors who had committed lapses in the hospital's inspection. 

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