Mumbai: A Mumbai based doctor has been infected with coronavirus after delivering the baby of a COVID positive patient who allegedly concealed her COVID positive status from the hospital and the doctor.
According to a recent media report, the couple allegedly hid the fact that the mother-to-be is COVID positive and the pregnant woman got admitted to the Non-COVID maternity Hospital in Malad. The 33-year-old woman not only allegedly ended up infecting the doctor, who despite learning about the lie helped deliver the baby, but also put other staffers at risk.
The hospital is contemplating taking legal actions against the couple to prevent such incidents in the future.
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According to the Times of India, on September 22nd around 2:30 a.m, the 33-year-old pregnant woman was taken to the hospital as she was in labour. One of the gynaecologists was on duty and she attended her. The doctor inquired the patient about her COVID status but since she was about to give birth, she refused to undergo any test. Under such circumstances, the doctor ordered a COVID test immediately according to the protocol.
When the lab technician reached the hospital a few hours later to collect the samples in order to conduct the COVID test, the husband disclosed that the patient was COVID positive and he was previously informed about it.
The doctor who got infected told that the mother claimed that she was not aware of her being a COVID positive and it was her husband who had hid the fact. The gynaecologist told TOI " the husband began to apologize and admitted having received the test report the previous day around 5 p.m. He said their gynaecologist advised him to get his wife admitted to a COVID hospital but he did not want his baby being born there so he lied."
The doctors were angry and upset at the patient's unethical behaviour, but she could not just turn away from her responsibilities and hence the patient was immediately taken to Sanjivani Hospital in Malad which is a designated COVID hospital. There the gynaecologist herself delivered the baby.
The newborn and the mother were discharged on September 25th. However, according to the daily, 4 days after delivery, the doctor started developing symptoms like fever and was eventually tested COVID positive. Her health condition started deteriorating within a week and she had to be rushed to Nanavati Hospital where her oxygen saturation level was decreasing. She said, "my viral load was extremely high perhaps due to prolonged exposure."
She had to be given high doses of steroids in order to improve her oxygen levels. Meanwhile, her 8-year-old daughter and in-laws also had to be isolated.
The gynaecologist stated that their Hospital has also taken precautions against the pandemic but since it is a maternity Hospital, the preventions are not at par with those at a designated COVID hospital.
TOI reports that the behaviour of the patient has been criticized by her as it put other health workers at risk of being infected as well.
Citing the incident as 'apalling' the gynaecologist and one of the founders of the hospital said that it shows how doctors can be vulnerable and under constant risk of exposure during the pandemic. The founder and doctor further added that " doctors have responsibilities but rights too. My question is where is the protection for doctors and the corresponding responsibility from patients.'
He has also confirmed that the hospital may think about taking legal actions so that patients must think of consequences before repeating this kind of mistake that threatens the safety of Health workers.