Guwahati Medical College Hospital HoD Paediatrics among 5 suspended over infant's death

Guwahati: The Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Assam’s largest government-run hospital, has suspended five of its staff members, including the head of the paediatrics department and expelled two postgraduate trainees after being found guilty of negligence following the tragic death of a four-day-old girl inside the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

The infant, born on August 15, was admitted for jaundice treatment. On August 18, she reportedly fell from a phototherapy bed and got strangled in the wires attached to it. Shockingly, no staff member was present in the NICU at the time.

Following the incident, the state government set up a three-member inquiry committee comprising Additional Chief Secretary Sweety Changsan, Director of Medical Education Dr Anup Barman, and AIIMS Guwahati Paediatrics HoD Dr Jaya Shankar Kaushik. Their report held the seven accused responsible for negligence, attempting to mislead the probe team, and the manipulation of hospital records.

Also read- Rs 26 lakh scam hits Rajasthan Health Scheme; 5 doctors among 9 suspended

Acting on the report, GMCH suspended two senior doctors, two nurses, an ICU technician and expelled two PG trainees for six months: Dr Anupama Deka, Head of Paediatrics; Dr Dipangkar Hazarika, Associate Professor in the same department; Dr Hrishikesh Thakuria, a second-year postgraduate trainee and Dr Pooja Saikia, a first year postgraduate trainee; nurses Gomti Devi and Chandana Nath; and ICU technician Ishanjyoti Talukdar

As per an Indian Express media report, the two trainee doctors are postgraduate students of the Srimanta Sankardeva University of Health Sciences, which is affiliated with GMCH.

The suspended staff members will face departmental inquiries from the Medical Education and Research Department, the Directorate of Health Services, and the Srimanta Sankardeva University.

As per Guwahati Plus, the incident happened at 5:30 AM, and there were two newborns who slipped from their beds. As per hospital authorities, one child survived, but the other was found hanging from the phototherapy unit and could not be revived despite resuscitation efforts.

A few days after the death of the newborn, a nurse on duty, Bhanupriya Misong, was arrested for culpable homicide. The incident has raised concerns about the alarming lapses in neonatal care at the premier medical institution.

To prevent such incidents further, the Health Commissioner and Secretary Siddharth Singh wrote a letter to GMCH Superintendent Dr Achyut Baishya and Additional Superintendent Pradip Kumar Das expressing strong dissatisfaction over the incident.

In the letter, the hospital has been instructed to strengthen supervision, enforce strict adherence to safety protocols, and submit a compliance report to the Health Department without delay.

“You are also directed to be careful in the future and ensure that such incidents do not happen again,” the letter stated, underscoring accountability at the highest level of the institution, reports GPlus.

Also read- Khanna Civil Hospital Gynaecologist suspended for alleged negligence in newborn death case