Kerala: Heads to roll in MBBS student's tragic death

KOCHI: Heads are set to roll in the case of the tragic death of second year MBBS student Shamna Tasnim at Ernakulam Government Medical College (EMC) on July 18 with the three-member committee submitting a damning report. The committee was headed by Joint Director of Medical Education Dr K Sreekumari and comprised Thiruvananthapuram Medical College medicine professor Dr M.K. Suresh and pulmonary medicine professor Dr K. Anitha. The committee submitted its report after an inspection of the facilities at the medical college and taking evidence from students and staff on July 25. The committee also went through the post-mortem report and the lab results and arrived at its conclusion.

The committee submitted its report to the Health Secretary Rajeev Sadanandan on Thursday and he is set to take action in consultation with the Health Minister. A top health department official said that strong action would be taken against responsible persons. “There was not even a provision to give oxygen to the student at the ward, apart from the lack of other facilities. It is a case of organisational failure and it is very shocking when it happens in the case of a young MBBS girl student of the same college. The facilities available at the medical college for such emergency treatment were dismal. The diagnosis was proper but the rest did not fall into place, as per the report,” said the official.

He was responding to the question whether there was a delay by the doctors to give adrenaline injection to Shamna after she collapsed following the administering of the Ceftriaxone antibiotic injection. The official, refusing to divulge further details, said that departmental action would be taken against those responsible on the basis of the committee’s report.

Shamna’s dad, relatives to meet CM today

The police probe into MBBS student Shamna Tasnim’s death is making tardy progress with the Assistant Commissioner (Thrikkakara) Mr Binoy M, who is the investigating officer, finally writing a letter to the Commissioner of Police Mr M.P. Dinesh requesting him to convene the medical board. “The Commissioner will receive the letter on Monday and after that he will write to the District Medical Officer on convening the medical board,” Mr Binoy told DC on Friday. The medical board consists of DMO, the City Police Commissioner, District Government Pleader and Forensic Surgeon from a Government Medical College.

A senior police official said that the high expectations of parents and relatives of Shamna in the findings of the medical board were misplaced. “The conviction rates related to medical negligence is very low in the country as a whole,” he pointed out. Meanwhile, Shamna’s father K.A. Abootty and some of the relatives will reach EMC on Saturday in a bid to meet Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and express their concern over the tardy progress of the investigation and seek steps to punish the guilty. “She had only mild fever and walked into the hospital for treatment. She collapsed after the injection was taken and she was not given proper treatment after that,” Mr Abootty told DC over phone on Friday.