Pune: The report of Sassoon General Hospital’s medical board on the death of a six-year-old girl during an eye evaluation procedure at Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital is awaited, a month after her death on May 18 triggered allegations of medical negligence.Dr Yellapa Jadhav, medical superintendent, Sassoon General Hospital, said, “Right now, we have got the preliminary report from our experts. We need more experts to prepare a comprehensive report in this matter. We will submit the report soon.”The Sassoon medical board’s report would be a crucial document. The police decision on whether or not to file an FIR against the private charitable hospital for alleged medical negligence would hinge on it.Six-year-old Priyanshi was admitted to Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital on May 18 for an eye evaluation procedure, during which she passed away. The girl’s family questioned the delay in submitting the Sassoon medical report.Jitendra Bagade, the father of Priyanshi, said, “We haven’t got any response from the police or the hospital as to who is responsible for our daughter’s death. We have no political connection and our poverty forces us to focus on work. But we are hopeful that we will get justice for our daughter and no other child will face this fate.”He said, “We will never recover from this loss. We are daily wage workers from a remote village in Gondia. We thought our daughter was in safe hands in the city hospital, but what happened was traumatising.”Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital initiated an internal inquiry. The Alankar police referred the case to the Sassoon medical board for experts’ opinion.Earlier this month, a five-member expert panel appointed by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to probe the death noted that the hospital did not carry out essential tests, including X-ray, ECG and 2D Echo, before treating the girl. It also advised further investigation by the Sassoon hospital.
