Tirunelveli MCH doctor accused of falsely implicating patient as intoxicated to protect health dept staff

Tirunelveli: A doctor at Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital (TvMCH) has been accused of fabricating medical records of a road accident victim by falsely implicating him as intoxicated at the time of the accident. The patient alleged that the cover-up was done to protect a health department staff member involved in the accident. 

According to the patient, the attending doctor falsely recorded that his "breath smelled of alcohol" in the medical report, leading to the police registering a case against him instead of the perpetrator. However, he denied being drunk when the accident happened. 

He also alleged that he demanded his blood test report to prove his innocence, but the hospital authorities refused to hand over the report. Despite filing an RTI application, he alleged that the hospital administration refused to provide him with his blood test results. 

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Seeking action against the doctor and the health department staff, the 31-year-old survivor from Murappanadu in Thoothukudi filed a petition to the District Collector Dr K P Karthikeyan. 

According to the patient's statements, he was seriously injured in an accident on August 26, 2024, when a car driven by a health department staffer struck him. He was admitted to TvMCH in critical condition but later transferred to a private hospital in Madurai due to alleged inadequate treatment.

Speaking to TNIE, Sundararaj alleged that the doctor took advantage of his ‘near-death’ condition to help the health staff, who works at a primary health centre. He further stated that after the TvMCH doctors allegedly failed to treat him properly, he was shifted to a private hospital in Madurai where he remained unconscious for several weeks.

In response to the accusations, Dean Dr C Revathy Balan of TvMCH, when contacted over the matter, stated that she would order an inquiry into the allegations. However, in this regard, the patient claimed that the dean refused to meet with him regarding the blood test results under the RTI Act. 

Speaking to TNIE, the patient said, “I am the sole breadwinner of my family. My father passed away 30 years ago. I was a temporary garbage vehicle operator for Thoothukudi Corporation. On August 26, 2024, while returning home from a temple around 4.15 pm, I was hit by a car driven by a health department staff member and lost consciousness. The staff admitted me to TvMCH and left the hospital. Since TvMCH doctors told my mother, G Muthulakshmi, that they could not save me, she took me to a private hospital, where we had to spend Rs 17 lakh for my recovery."

Further, he added, "Instead of taking a complaint from my mother, the Tirunelveli district police registered a case against me by receiving a complaint from the health staff. When I partially recovered in November, I went to the police station to retrieve my vehicle. However, I was denied it, with the police claiming that I was intoxicated at the time of the accident. I was shocked to hear this as I am a teetotaller. Through an RTI application, I accessed some of my medical records and found that the TvMCH doctor who treated me had inserted the phrase 'breath smells of alcohol' on the left side of the report. When I requested my blood test report for verification under the RTI Act, the TvMCH administration denied it. When I approached Dean Dr C Revathy Balan, she refused to meet me."

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