Patient contracts Hepatitis B after Blood Transfusion: Hospital slapped Rs 6.35 Lakh Compensation for Medical Negligence

Coimbatore: The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (DCDRC) in Coimbatore recently directed a private hospital to pay Rs 6.35 lakh to a patient who contracted Hepatitis B after undergoing a blood transfusion at the hospital while being admitted there for delivery.

While considering the consumer complaint filed by the woman, the District Consumer Court directed the hospital to pay Rs 5 lakh as compensation and Rs 1.35 lakh towards medical expenses for the patient, who developed liver-related complications after contracting Hepatitis B. Apart from this, the hospital has also been directed to pay Rs 5000 as litigation expenses.

During her pregnancy, the patient, who hails from Coimbatore, visited the hospital on Puliakulam Road for regular check-ups to ensure that her baby was healthy. When she visited the facility on October 3, 2022, she was advised to undergo a blood test; the report showed that the presence of HBsAg (Hepatitis B surface antigen) in her blood was non-reactive.

Consequently, on May 2, 2023, the child was born, and during the postnatal period, the patient experienced a blood loss of 1,000 ml. Therefore, the attending doctor arranged for a transfusion of one unit of packed red cells from the hospital's blood bank. Later, she was discharged on the same day.

Also Read: SC raises concerns over High-risk Label for Transgender blood donors

As per the latest media report by the Times of India, after getting discharged from the hospital, the patient started experiencing joint pain and consulted another hospital for treatment. The treating doctor at the second hospital advised a blood test, which the patient underwent on August 1, 2023. However, she was shocked to find that the blood test report showed that she was HBsAg positive. This confirmed that the patient had contracted Hepatitis B.

The patient claimed that between April 30 and August 1, 2023, she was not admitted to any other hospital apart from the one on Puliakulam Road. She did not even take any medication from any other hospital. Further, she submitted that before being diagnosed with Hepatitis B, she never suffered from jaundice or any liver-related disease.

TOI has reported that due to the illness, the patient's liver was affected, and this caused trauma to her entire family. Following this, the patient filed a complaint with the Coimbatore District Consumer Court. The Commission president, R Thangavel and members P Marimuthu and G Suguna directed the hospital to compensate the patient by paying Rs 1.35 lakh as medical expenses and Rs 5 lakh as compensation for the mental agony and emotional trauma caused by the hospital's negligence and deficiency in service.

Also Read: Pregnant Woman Dies After suspected Blood Transfusion mix-up at SMS Hospital