Court asks surgeon to pay Rs 12 lakh compensation to patient for botched Hernia surgery in Tamil Nadu

A surgeon in Rasipuram has been ordered by the Namakkal district consumer disputes redressal commission (NCDRC) to compensate a patient with Rs 12 lakh within four weeks for a botched hernia surgery. This ruling was made on Tuesday regarding a case filed by M Raja, a 52-year-old resident of Rasipuram, detailing the negligence he faced during a surgery conducted in August 2021 by Dr. Ramesh at a private hospital in Rasipuram.

In August 2021, M Raja consulted Dr. Ramesh at a private hospital after being diagnosed with a hernia. Dr. Ramesh recommended immediate surgery, which was estimated to cost Rs 60,000. However, complications arose during the surgery due to a shortage of carbon dioxide gas necessary for the procedure, causing it to be halted midway. When the required gas was acquired, the surgery resumed, but complications persisted as Raja regained consciousness due to the waning effect of anesthesia during the delay.

"I felt great pain during the surgery but the nurses pinned me down to complete the surgery even though I asked them to stop," Raja recounted.


Post-surgery, Raja faced significant health issues, including an inability to raise his head, difficulty eating, and a loss of seven kilograms in weight. His condition further deteriorated when he developed a severe fever, leading to his admission to another private hospital in Coimbatore. There, doctors diagnosed Raja with an abdomen infection caused by the implanted mesh, necessitating a second surgery to remove and replace the faulty implant.

In September 2022, Raja sought redress by filing a petition with the NCDRC, accusing Dr. Ramesh of negligence. He attributed his health complications to the delayed surgery, sub-standard mesh used, and the initial shortage of the necessary gas.

The NCDRC, led by president V Ramaraj and member R Ramola, concluded that the documents provided by the hospital where the second surgery and subsequent treatments took place supported Raja's claims. They ruled that Dr. Ramesh had indeed been negligent, thereby committing a deficiency in service.