Doctor operates on wrong leg of woman to remove implanted rod at Hassan hospital, family distressed

HASSAN: In a shocking case of medical negligence at the Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences (HIMS), a doctor’s mistake has left a poor woman, Jyothi, bedridden for a month. Her family has demanded action against the doctor and compensation for operating on the wrong leg to remove implanted rods.

The doctor, Santosh, operated on Jyothi’s right leg instead of the left leg, which had a rod implanted after an accident 2.5 years ago. Jyothi is now unable to walk and needs to take bed rest for a month. She has two young children and an elderly mother to care for.

Institute Director Rajanna took stock of the situation and has sought a report on the incident. “If the report finds Dr Santosh guilty of negligence, action will be taken against him and compensation will be provided to Jyothi”, he said.

When Jyothi’s mother Hemavathi questioned the doctor, he told her that the X-ray showed that the rod was inserted in the right leg. Jyothi and her husband were daily wage earners and her inability to work will affect their livelihood. The family is struggling to care for her, her two young children and her elderly mother.

“The doctor first operated on my right leg and later operated my left leg again to remove the rod. I had met with an accident. We are labourers and now I don’t know what to do as they have advised one month’s bed rest and both my legs are operated upon”, said Jyothi.

“How can we earn if both her legs are operated upon. How do we take care of her children now? The Kadur police had visited the hospital. We request the authorities to provide some compensation”, said Hemavathi, her mother.