HC quashes order to disclose ICU patient details at Goa Medical College

The court ruled that disclosing such information, even for a matter of significant public interest, is not appropriate. As the patients' data are protected under the 'Right to Privacy.' The court further stated that even anonymised data cannot be shared, as doing so violates the Right to Privacy enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution.

According to the TOI report, in February 2025, the Commission directed the GMC to provide medical information regarding all 21 ICU patients admitted on January 25 and 26, 2024, but without disclosing their personal identities.

This decision came after the deceased's father, D'Mello, informed the High Court that his son had died due to the unavailability of an ICU bed. He sought this information to compare the severity and criticality of the medical conditions of patients already admitted to the ICU with those of his son.

He also informed the court that his son's condition was far more critical than that of some other patients admitted to the ICU. Furthermore, he stated that had the doctors in charge of the ICU paid due attention to the severity of the medical conditions of the admitted patients, his son would not have been denied a bed in the ICU, nor would he have died.

Subsequently, Justice Neela Gokhale observed that although the father's grief and intentions were understandable, the request nonetheless failed to meet the test of broader public interest.

Therefore, the court added, “Their desire to know the circumstances surrounding their son's death cannot be termed malicious; however, seeking details regarding the medical condition of other patients is not appropriate.”