Post by jono on May 19, 2006 23:20:03 GMT -5
Patient dies in uncertified surgery, intestines sewn together
Story taken from Stabroek News online newspaper www.stabroeknews.com
The Medical Council of Guyana is to meet on Wednesday to consider the case against a Berbice doctor whose patient died several days after a part of his intestine was allegedly improperly sewn up.
The man died while undergoing follow-up medical care at the Georgetown Hospital. The doctor, John Austin was to have been invited yesterday to the hearing. Up to last evening, Dr Austin said he had received no communication from the council and declined to say anything on the matter.
Roopchand Hansrajiea, age 57, from Number 73 Village, Berbice, died on November 4, while doctors at the Georgetown Hospital tried to correct complications which had resulted from an operation the man underwent at Dr Austin's office in New Amsterdam. The man had gone into the clinic over a hernia.
Stabroek News learnt that the man died from shock resulting from an infection caused by a build-up of faeces from the allegedly incorrect surgical procedure. The surgery, Stabroek News understands, caused a part of the man's intestines to be sewn up resulting in the faecal accumulation.
Chairman of the Council Dr MY Bacchus confirmed the hearing yesterday. He said that the Council had met on Wednesday during which it considered a letter of complaint sent by the Georgetown Hospital. "We are sending it to the Attorney-General's Chambers which will then forward it to the High Court to facilitate an injunction [against the doctor]," he said.
He said that the Council has not received any correspondence from the man's family.
According to a source in Berbice, the man's family may be approaching the Medical Council for action to be taken against the doctor.
The man, who has three children and operated a sluice in his village, went to the doctor for surgery after it had been diagnosed that he had a wound in his intestine that was infected.
The man's children told Stabroek News that Hansrajiea returned from the doctor and told them that he had awakened during the surgery and was given an injection.
He was said to be "feeling alright" after he returned but began complaining of pains the next day. This was on November 1.
On November 3, the man went back to the doctor to have the wound dressed and the doctor gave him a paper that, according to the family, said he had a weak heart beat and that he should go the New Amsterdam Hospital.
At the New Amsterdam Hospital, the doctor who looked at him told him that he needed another surgery because he was infected, and yet another doctor recommended that the man go to the Georgetown Hospital because he was in a critical state.
On November 4, he went to the Georgetown Hospital for the next surgery and when the doctors cut him open to clean out his insides he died from septic shock.
Questions were then raised about the earlier operation he had had.
Dr Austin had been debarred from surgical procedures following a previous death at his surgery although he was still allowed to practise other forms of medicine.
Dr Bacchus told Stabroek News that the council summoned the doctor after that procedure and questioned him, in the presence of an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialist and an anaesthesiologist and with the input of the two, the council concluded that the doctor had been negligent.
The Council then stopped him from practising general and specialist surgery.
Dr Austin then moved to the High Court and was granted a Writ of Certiorari and a Writ of Prohibition resulting in his being able to operate again.
According to Dr Bacchus, the council was denied a hearing in that matter.
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Letter to the editors of Kaieteur News & Stabroek News by Bryan Mackintosh
Dear Editor, I’m still reeling from shock and extreme anger after reading about the death of Berbician Roopchand Hansrajiea due to the total incompetence of one Dr. John Austin. This is not the first time that the unskilled and uncertified work of this doctor has resulted in the death of someone, it sadly has happened before. The medical council of Guyana had in no uncertain terms made it quite clear to this medical practitioner that he must never practice surgery again. The medical council had come to that decision after they had investigated the death of one of his patients. This doctor however went to the Courts of Guyana and got a Judge to grant him an injunction restraining the medical council from enforcing their decision. The result is that someone has died because of this Judge’s decision.
Why do we even bother to have a medical Council when all a doctor has to do is get a Judge to override any decision that the medical council makes against him or her. A few years ago, one medical practitioner actually got a Judge to grant an injunction preventing the medical council from hearing a complaint against him, to the best of my knowledge that case was never heard by the medical council and as such the person who made that complaint was never given justice or even a change to have his grievance heard. The Medical Council of Guyana indeed seems to be a toothless poodle and it is us the ordinary people who will continue to suffer if this perception does not change. I am sure that if this series of events had occurred in any other country that the politicians there would have hurriedly put laws in place to ensure that it never happened again to ensure that patient’s rights were properly protected. What has happened to the late Mr. Roopchand Hansrajiea can happen to any of us and I truly hope that this horrible incident is not swept under the carpet like so many others before. The family and friends of Mr. Roopchand Hansrajiea deserves justice and I pray that they find the strength to seek it. Come on Guyana, raise your voices loudly, let the doctors and their protectors know that have had enough of their nonsense. Enough is enough.
Yours faithfully, Bryan Mackintosh. Health Advocate
Unprofessional journalism
Tuesday, November 16th 2004. Story taken from www.stabroeknews.com
Dear Editor, I knew the late Patrick Denny. He was a decent, down to earth individual. I also know Dr Santosh, not personally but professionally. He is a surgeon attached to both the Georgetown and Prashad hospitals. He operated on Mr Denny. I do not know anything about the nature of Mr Denny's illness or the clinical condition or the operative findings and procedure. What I do know is that Adam Harris is totally out of order (KN14/11/04) in suggesting that Patrick Denny's death was due to "Surgery gone wrong" by Dr Santosh. Harris has become judge and jury without knowing all the technical facts - and he does this because he has access to writing articles in a newspaper. Jumping for Dr Santosh's jugular because Mr Denny was his personal friend is totally unprofessional.
What Mr Harris should do is argue in his newspaper for the Medical Council to get more teeth - so that when a case has been tried by a doctor's peers - and a decision arrived at - some smart aleck lawyer won't take that case to some judge and get an injunction against the council's decision without that judge even listening to the medical council's side - as happened recently when the council took a decision to prevent a doctor from doing surgery. The doctor took a lawyer who got a judge to grant an injunction against the council without listening to a word from the council. You know what? That doctor operated again. The patient died in Georgetown Hospital ten days ago. I do hope the court is well satisfied. Now Mr Harris - I want you to take up that story.
Yours faithfully,
Dr M.Y. Bacchus
Stabroek News Editor's note: We are sending a copy of this letter to Mr Adam Harris for any comments he may wish to make.
Medical Council gets formal complaint against NA doctor over patient death
Tuesday, December 14th 2004 as published in Stabroek News
The Medical Council of Guyana has received a formal complaint from the family of Roopchand Haransrajiea, who died last month while undergoing corrective surgery after an operation in New Amsterdam.
Haransrajiea, age 57, from Number 73 Village, Berbice, died from septic shock on November 4, while doctors at the Georgetown Hospital were attempting to correct complications resulting from a hernial operation the man underwent at a doctor's office in New Amsterdam four days earlier.
Septic shock is said to have resulted from an infection caused by a build-up of faeces from the surgical procedure as a result of part of the man's intestines being sewn up.
As the family has formally approached the Council, that body could now take the necessary action against the doctor. It would have been hard-pressed to do so without the family's formal approach, Stabroek News understands.
According to Chairman of the Council, Dr MY Bacchus, the family tendered the letter recently and this as well as the letter from a doctor at the Georgetown Hospital were forwarded to the Berbice-based doctor who had on November 1 operated on Haransrajiea. Bacchus said the Council is now waiting on a response from the doctor who will be subsequently called before the Council on this matter.
That same doctor and the Council are before the High Court on another matter, involving an injunction the Council had obtained against his performing surgeries following an earlier patient death on his operating table. A judge had granted a stay of this injunction, resulting in the doctor being able to operate again.
www.gmrsc.com/
Story taken from Stabroek News online newspaper www.stabroeknews.com
The Medical Council of Guyana is to meet on Wednesday to consider the case against a Berbice doctor whose patient died several days after a part of his intestine was allegedly improperly sewn up.
The man died while undergoing follow-up medical care at the Georgetown Hospital. The doctor, John Austin was to have been invited yesterday to the hearing. Up to last evening, Dr Austin said he had received no communication from the council and declined to say anything on the matter.
Roopchand Hansrajiea, age 57, from Number 73 Village, Berbice, died on November 4, while doctors at the Georgetown Hospital tried to correct complications which had resulted from an operation the man underwent at Dr Austin's office in New Amsterdam. The man had gone into the clinic over a hernia.
Stabroek News learnt that the man died from shock resulting from an infection caused by a build-up of faeces from the allegedly incorrect surgical procedure. The surgery, Stabroek News understands, caused a part of the man's intestines to be sewn up resulting in the faecal accumulation.
Chairman of the Council Dr MY Bacchus confirmed the hearing yesterday. He said that the Council had met on Wednesday during which it considered a letter of complaint sent by the Georgetown Hospital. "We are sending it to the Attorney-General's Chambers which will then forward it to the High Court to facilitate an injunction [against the doctor]," he said.
He said that the Council has not received any correspondence from the man's family.
According to a source in Berbice, the man's family may be approaching the Medical Council for action to be taken against the doctor.
The man, who has three children and operated a sluice in his village, went to the doctor for surgery after it had been diagnosed that he had a wound in his intestine that was infected.
The man's children told Stabroek News that Hansrajiea returned from the doctor and told them that he had awakened during the surgery and was given an injection.
He was said to be "feeling alright" after he returned but began complaining of pains the next day. This was on November 1.
On November 3, the man went back to the doctor to have the wound dressed and the doctor gave him a paper that, according to the family, said he had a weak heart beat and that he should go the New Amsterdam Hospital.
At the New Amsterdam Hospital, the doctor who looked at him told him that he needed another surgery because he was infected, and yet another doctor recommended that the man go to the Georgetown Hospital because he was in a critical state.
On November 4, he went to the Georgetown Hospital for the next surgery and when the doctors cut him open to clean out his insides he died from septic shock.
Questions were then raised about the earlier operation he had had.
Dr Austin had been debarred from surgical procedures following a previous death at his surgery although he was still allowed to practise other forms of medicine.
Dr Bacchus told Stabroek News that the council summoned the doctor after that procedure and questioned him, in the presence of an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialist and an anaesthesiologist and with the input of the two, the council concluded that the doctor had been negligent.
The Council then stopped him from practising general and specialist surgery.
Dr Austin then moved to the High Court and was granted a Writ of Certiorari and a Writ of Prohibition resulting in his being able to operate again.
According to Dr Bacchus, the council was denied a hearing in that matter.
***************************
Letter to the editors of Kaieteur News & Stabroek News by Bryan Mackintosh
Dear Editor, I’m still reeling from shock and extreme anger after reading about the death of Berbician Roopchand Hansrajiea due to the total incompetence of one Dr. John Austin. This is not the first time that the unskilled and uncertified work of this doctor has resulted in the death of someone, it sadly has happened before. The medical council of Guyana had in no uncertain terms made it quite clear to this medical practitioner that he must never practice surgery again. The medical council had come to that decision after they had investigated the death of one of his patients. This doctor however went to the Courts of Guyana and got a Judge to grant him an injunction restraining the medical council from enforcing their decision. The result is that someone has died because of this Judge’s decision.
Why do we even bother to have a medical Council when all a doctor has to do is get a Judge to override any decision that the medical council makes against him or her. A few years ago, one medical practitioner actually got a Judge to grant an injunction preventing the medical council from hearing a complaint against him, to the best of my knowledge that case was never heard by the medical council and as such the person who made that complaint was never given justice or even a change to have his grievance heard. The Medical Council of Guyana indeed seems to be a toothless poodle and it is us the ordinary people who will continue to suffer if this perception does not change. I am sure that if this series of events had occurred in any other country that the politicians there would have hurriedly put laws in place to ensure that it never happened again to ensure that patient’s rights were properly protected. What has happened to the late Mr. Roopchand Hansrajiea can happen to any of us and I truly hope that this horrible incident is not swept under the carpet like so many others before. The family and friends of Mr. Roopchand Hansrajiea deserves justice and I pray that they find the strength to seek it. Come on Guyana, raise your voices loudly, let the doctors and their protectors know that have had enough of their nonsense. Enough is enough.
Yours faithfully, Bryan Mackintosh. Health Advocate
Unprofessional journalism
Tuesday, November 16th 2004. Story taken from www.stabroeknews.com
Dear Editor, I knew the late Patrick Denny. He was a decent, down to earth individual. I also know Dr Santosh, not personally but professionally. He is a surgeon attached to both the Georgetown and Prashad hospitals. He operated on Mr Denny. I do not know anything about the nature of Mr Denny's illness or the clinical condition or the operative findings and procedure. What I do know is that Adam Harris is totally out of order (KN14/11/04) in suggesting that Patrick Denny's death was due to "Surgery gone wrong" by Dr Santosh. Harris has become judge and jury without knowing all the technical facts - and he does this because he has access to writing articles in a newspaper. Jumping for Dr Santosh's jugular because Mr Denny was his personal friend is totally unprofessional.
What Mr Harris should do is argue in his newspaper for the Medical Council to get more teeth - so that when a case has been tried by a doctor's peers - and a decision arrived at - some smart aleck lawyer won't take that case to some judge and get an injunction against the council's decision without that judge even listening to the medical council's side - as happened recently when the council took a decision to prevent a doctor from doing surgery. The doctor took a lawyer who got a judge to grant an injunction against the council without listening to a word from the council. You know what? That doctor operated again. The patient died in Georgetown Hospital ten days ago. I do hope the court is well satisfied. Now Mr Harris - I want you to take up that story.
Yours faithfully,
Dr M.Y. Bacchus
Stabroek News Editor's note: We are sending a copy of this letter to Mr Adam Harris for any comments he may wish to make.
Medical Council gets formal complaint against NA doctor over patient death
Tuesday, December 14th 2004 as published in Stabroek News
The Medical Council of Guyana has received a formal complaint from the family of Roopchand Haransrajiea, who died last month while undergoing corrective surgery after an operation in New Amsterdam.
Haransrajiea, age 57, from Number 73 Village, Berbice, died from septic shock on November 4, while doctors at the Georgetown Hospital were attempting to correct complications resulting from a hernial operation the man underwent at a doctor's office in New Amsterdam four days earlier.
Septic shock is said to have resulted from an infection caused by a build-up of faeces from the surgical procedure as a result of part of the man's intestines being sewn up.
As the family has formally approached the Council, that body could now take the necessary action against the doctor. It would have been hard-pressed to do so without the family's formal approach, Stabroek News understands.
According to Chairman of the Council, Dr MY Bacchus, the family tendered the letter recently and this as well as the letter from a doctor at the Georgetown Hospital were forwarded to the Berbice-based doctor who had on November 1 operated on Haransrajiea. Bacchus said the Council is now waiting on a response from the doctor who will be subsequently called before the Council on this matter.
That same doctor and the Council are before the High Court on another matter, involving an injunction the Council had obtained against his performing surgeries following an earlier patient death on his operating table. A judge had granted a stay of this injunction, resulting in the doctor being able to operate again.
www.gmrsc.com/