Posted By :  Admin1

The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) has overturned an older ruling that had found doctors at the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI) negligent in treating a child who died in the early 1990s. After reviewing the case, the commission stated that there was no evidence to show any lapse in the medical treatment provided to the child, who had been diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

According to the NCDRC, the diagnosis and treatment methods followed by the doctors matched the medical standards of that time. The panel noted that the child received chemotherapy and related care as per the protocols available in the early 1990s. The earlier order of the Uttar Pradesh State Consumer Commission, which had blamed the doctors and directed a compensation of nearly fifty lakh rupees, has now been set aside.

While the doctors were cleared, the NCDRC pointed out serious issues in SGPGI’s administrative practices. The commission observed that several important medical records from the child’s first admission were missing. Incomplete documentation, inconsistent details, and missing forms were highlighted as deficiencies in the hospital’s system, even though the medical care itself was not found faulty.

For these lapses in record-keeping, SGPGI has been ordered to pay six lakh rupees, which includes compensation and legal costs. The commission’s decision makes a clear distinction between medical negligence and administrative shortcomings, stating that hospitals must maintain proper documentation regardless of the quality of treatment provided.