Medical Negligence Alleged: Vision Loss in Two Babies

Medical Negligence: "Our Babies Suffer a Lifetime of Vision Impairment Because of Hospital Negligence"

At a tender age, Baby Adrita and Baby Mivaan are already experiencing a harsh reality most infants are spared. Both babies wear oversized glasses, a stark reminder of their compromised vision, which their parents allege was caused by medical negligence at Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital in Bardhaman in West Bengal. The families of these children, devastated and seeking justice, recount the harrowing experiences that have left their children with impaired vision.

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Hitesh Choudhary, father of Baby Mivaan, shared the painful details of his son’s birth. “I admitted my wife to Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital around 1:30 am on June 23, 2023, and by morning, she was deemed fit to go home. But repeated delays in her discharge kept us waiting. By evening, the hospital administered an injection that triggered sudden labour, leading to my son Mivaan's birth at 8:07 pm the very same day," Hitesh recounted. 

“My baby was born premature. Between 8:07 and 8:47, my baby was alone, without any medical supervision,” Hitesh revealed. “When finally taken to the NICU, Mivaan was declared a high-risk baby and kept under observation for 43 days, with mounting NICU charges.” For Hitesh and his family, those days marked only the beginning of a nightmare that continues as they now contend with their son’s vision impairment, a condition they believe could have been avoided with proper care.

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More Cases of Medical Negligence Unfold

Medical Negligence: "Our Babies Suffer a Lifetime of Vision Impairment Because of Hospital Negligence"

At a tender age, Baby Adrita and Baby Mivaan are already experiencing a harsh reality most infants are spared. Both babies wear oversized glasses, a stark reminder of their compromised vision, which their parents allege was caused by medical negligence at Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital in Bardhaman in West Bengal. The families of these children, devastated and seeking justice, recount the harrowing experiences that have left their children with impaired vision.

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We are a small, dedicated team at The Probe, committed to in-depth, slow journalism that dives deeper than daily headlines. We can't sustain our vital work without your support. Please consider contributing to our social impact projects: Support Us or Become a Member of The Probe. Even your smallest support will help us keep our journalism alive.

Hitesh Choudhary, father of Baby Mivaan, shared the painful details of his son’s birth. “I admitted my wife to Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital around 1:30 am on June 23, 2023, and by morning, she was deemed fit to go home. But repeated delays in her discharge kept us waiting. By evening, the hospital administered an injection that triggered sudden labour, leading to my son Mivaan's birth at 8:07 pm the very same day," Hitesh recounted. 

“My baby was born premature. Between 8:07 and 8:47, my baby was alone, without any medical supervision,” Hitesh revealed. “When finally taken to the NICU, Mivaan was declared a high-risk baby and kept under observation for 43 days, with mounting NICU charges.” For Hitesh and his family, those days marked only the beginning of a nightmare that continues as they now contend with their son’s vision impairment, a condition they believe could have been avoided with proper care.

To join The Probe's Whatsapp Channel on Medical Negligence and Accountability, click here: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vak0ZCDEgGfMypjo1J3p

More Cases of Medical Negligence Unfold

During this difficult time, Hitesh encountered another couple, Manoj and Mitali, who were also at the hospital for the birth of their daughter, Baby Adrita. Hitesh, father of Baby Mivaan, recalls a moment when the fellow parent, Manoj Kumar Ghosh, cautioned him about the dangers of neglect at the hospital.

Hitesh recounted how Manoj reached out to him, warning him to insist on an ROP (Retinopathy of Prematurity) screening for his newborn. "He told me, ‘In my case, the hospital neglected my baby’s ROP treatment; please ensure they don’t do the same to your child.’ When I approached the doctor, he brushed it off, saying I shouldn’t worry,” Hitesh shared. Trusting the hospital’s judgment, Hitesh kept quiet, unaware of the impact these assurances—or lack thereof—would soon have on his son.

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Retinopathy of Prematurity Screening Critical for Premature Babies

Both Mivaan and Adrita were born prematurely, making them high-risk for ROP, a serious condition that can lead to blindness if not detected and treated early. Guidelines recommend that preterm infants undergo ROP screening within four weeks of birth. However, Hitesh alleges that not only did the hospital delay the screening for Mivaan, but upon discharge after a prolonged 43-day stay, they instructed the family to wait another 15 days before seeking an ROP test.

“After those 15 days, Manoj called me again, urging me to get the test done,” Hitesh continued. “So I went to a government hospital, only to learn that my baby had developed an aggressive form of ROP, which was now at a critical stage. The doctor there said my baby will suffer a lifelong vision impairment issue because of non-screening at Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital.”

A Dire Outcome and the Struggle for Treatment

For Hitesh and his wife Karishma, the delayed screening came with irreversible consequences. They soon discovered that Mivaan was losing sight in his left eye and facing rapid deterioration in the right. Desperate for options, they took Mivaan to Sankara Nethralaya in Chennai, where he underwent several laser treatments, injections, and ultimately an eye surgery—one that proved unsuccessful for his left eye.

“Today, my son’s left eye is completely detached, and his right eye requires -10 power glasses,” Hitesh shared in anguish. “This is a lifelong condition; we have to travel for treatment twice a year, which has taken a toll on my business and my family’s peace.”

Hitesh further alleges that when he questioned the doctor at Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital about the lack of ROP screening, the doctor admitted that he had informed the hospital Director of the need for this crucial test, yet no action was taken. “The doctor told me he performed his duties and held the hospital responsible for the medical negligence. I even have an audio recording of this conversation,” Hitesh disclosed.

Baby Mivaan's vision-related disability is now a permanent aspect of his life—one that his parents, Hitesh and Karishma, are grappling with every day. Since Mivaan's birth, the couple has been actively seeking justice, striving to hold Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital accountable for what they allege is clear medical negligence. Their journey, however, is far from over, and it appears to be shaping into a long legal battle.

Government Report Blames Hospital

A recent report by the Chief Medical Officer of Health in the West Bengal government has provided crucial support for the parents' claims. It states unequivocally that Baby Mivaan’s suffering resulted from the hospital's failure to conduct an ROP screening during his 43-day stay. The report highlights, "It is obvious from the BHT of the patient that ROP screening was not done during the baby's 43 days stay at Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital. As per standard practices, ROP screening should be done within 4 weeks of delivery in any child of birth weight of less than 1500 grams or gestational age of less than 32 weeks. Accordingly, the baby should have undergone ROP screening during his stay at the hospital."

The Probe also reached out to Manoj Kumar Ghosh, the father of Baby Adrita, who described a distressingly similar experience of alleged medical negligence at the same hospital.

Manoj states, "I admitted my baby on May 24, 2023, in the early hours. After examining my wife’s condition, the doctor decided on an immediate caesarean without any tests, simply observing her condition and indicating our baby would need NICU care. We were overwhelmed and trusted everything the doctor said. We just wanted our baby to survive, so we followed their instructions completely."

Both Hitesh and Manoj shared with The Probe that they had put their complete trust in the hospital, believing that the medical team would prioritise their babies' well-being. Unfortunately, both families were soon faced with the harsh reality that their trust might have been misplaced. Baby Adrita, like Mivaan, spent an extended period in the NICU—48 days—without receiving the critical ROP screening. After her discharge, Manoj, too, was advised to wait 15 days for the screening. Over the next few weeks, his two-month-old baby had to endure multiple invasive procedures. The toll on her young life, as well as on her family’s emotional well-being, is immeasurable.

Manoj explains, "My baby was in the NICU for 48 days without any ROP screening. The hospital only advised us to do it 15 days after discharge. On July 22, we went for the screening and discovered our baby had ROP. We immediately sought treatment at Sankara Nethralaya in Kolkata. By July 25, my baby had undergone laser treatment on both eyes, and one eye had also been injected. The procedures continued with more injections and surgeries at Sankara Nethralaya in Chennai. The doctors warned us about the risks, especially given that she was only two months old at that time, and though her left eye was operated on, it now has a high power of -5.75 that remains the same."

Manoj and Mitali, much like Hitesh and Karishma, are determined to pursue justice for the alleged negligence their child endured. The Chief Medical Officer of Health's report further backs their claims, stating that Baby Adrita’s vision impairment was also due to the very same hospital’s failure to perform the necessary screening.

The report notes, "It is obvious from the BHT of the patient that ROP screening was not done during the baby's 48 days stay at Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital. As per standard practices, ROP screening should be done within 4 weeks of delivery in any child of birth weight of less than 1500 grams or gestational age of less than 32 weeks; accordingly, the baby should have undergone ROP screening during her stay at the hospital."

Manoj is resolute in his belief that proper information from the hospital could have spared his child this hardship. "My baby weighed only 900 grams at birth. The doctors should have informed us that ROP screening was essential within 3 to 4 weeks. If they didn’t have the facilities, they could have directed us to another hospital, like Burdwan Medical College. We could have done it there. But we weren’t even told that ROP screening was a mandatory procedure for such premature babies," Manoj notes.

Seeking answers to the serious allegations against Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital, we reached out to Dr. Soumendra Saha Sikdar, the hospital's Proprietor. Dr. Sikdar plainly admitted that ROP screening had not been conducted due to a lack of required facilities at the time.

Dr. Sikdar stated, "One baby was born at the age of 27 weeks, just six and a half months. Another baby was born at 28 weeks, both weighing less than one kilogram. In such premature cases, ROP is a common complication, because of the general immaturity of various organs, not just the eyes. One of these babies was on a ventilator for over three weeks. Given their condition, ROP screening requires a retina specialist. This facility wasn’t available in our hospital at that time". 

When pressed about the NICU’s standards, which should include an ROP specialist, Dr. Sikdar said that access to specialised retinal care was limited in their region and that their main focus was on ensuring the babies' immediate survival.

Government Report States Hospital Tampered Documents

Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital’s website claims its NICU provides comprehensive care to premature and critically ill infants. However, questions arise as to how the NICU could function without facilities for essential ROP screening. Furthermore, the Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH) report highlights disturbing concerns of potential record tampering. The report notes: “The original BHT of baby of Karishma Choudhury appears to be tampered. It appears that an engineered page has been inserted later on to prove that they have counselled the patient party about ROP screening.” Shockingly, despite these findings, no action has been taken against the hospital or involved doctors.

That apart, concerns have also been raised by the families about the discharge summary of the babies. For instance, despite baby Mivaan’s 43-day stay, the hospital records show that they advised his family to wait an additional 15 days before conducting the ROP screening. When questioned on this, Dr. Sikdar deflected responsibility to the hospital’s pediatrician.

"I didn’t write the discharge summary. The pediatrician did. Our main focus was on the survival of these highly premature infants. We didn’t have the ROP screening facility, but we had to prioritise keeping the babies stable," asserted Dr Sikdar.

Both families claim that timely ROP screening—or at least sound advice on its importance or referral to another hospital—could have saved their babies’ vision. Yet, when we pressed Dr. Sikdar, his reluctance to address the hospital’s failings was evident.

"We cannot tell a patient when they come that we don’t have any ROP facility. I am sorry madam. I can't talk with you anymore. Thank you very much," stated Dr Sikdar. 

Today, both baby Mivaan and baby Adrita endure repeated surgeries and treatments when they should be exploring their surroundings with clear vision. Their parents have turned to consumer court and the state medical council to seek accountability from Sharanya Multispeciality Hospital. As they pursue justice, they continue to grapple with the physical and emotional toll of ongoing medical treatments. For these innocent children and their families, justice alone will not suffice; what they need now is swift and decisive justice.