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Journalism of Courage
At Pune’s Surya Mother and Child Superspeciality Hospital, Priyanka and Akshay Pate barely had the time to mourn the death of her sister-in-law Tanisha Bhise. The Pates, married just six months ago, have taken up the responsibility of looking after the twin girls whom Tanisha gave birth to just before she died last month.
Tanisha, who was in her thirties, delivered the twins at Surya Hospital in Wakad on March 29, and died at Manipal Hospital, Baner, two days later. Her family and Bharatiya Janata Party MLC Amit Gorkhe have alleged that Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital authorities refused to admit Tanisha due to nonpayment of an advanced deposit of Rs 10 lakh. Tanisha’s husband, Sushant, is Priyanka’s brother, and works as Gorkhe’s secretary.
On Friday, Maharashtra Health Minister Prakash Abitkar set up a committee to probe the death of Tanisha, as Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital denied the charges.
When contacted by The Indian Express, Dr Sachin Shah, Director, Neonatal and Paediatric Intensive Care Services, at the Surya Hospital, said the babies were stable, and are on a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine. CPAP machine delivers constant and steady air pressure to help a person breathe.
Dr Shah also said one of the twins weighed 600 gram at birth, and the other a kilogram.
Akshay alleged that authorities at Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital were “indifferent to Tanisha’s case”.
“Sushant is in a daze and is unable to understand how his wife passed away,” he said as he attended calls from relatives and others while waiting outside the neonatal intensive care unit at the Surya Hospital.
“My wife’s sister-in-law recovered from a previous ailment and had conceived via IVF. We were so happy. However, it was extremely unfortunate that the Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital authorities asked for such a hefty amount in advance. We had Rs 3 lakh and were willing to pay,” Pate told The Indian Express.
“Then we considered taking her to Sassoon General Hospital. However, we decided to go to Surya Hospital, where the seven-month pregnant Tanisha delivered twin girls on March 29,” he said.
While Dr Dhananjay Kelkar, Medical Director, Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, denied the allegations, the hospital said in a statement issued Friday that Tanisha’s “pregnancy was an extremely high risk one, and she was advised to come for a check-up every week”.
“She was expected to visit the hospital for a consultation on March 22, which she did not. On March 28, the woman, her husband, and a relative had reported to the OPD at the hospital at 11.30 am. Dr S Ghaisas attended to the patient and advised hospital admission, and the woman should be kept under observation since it was a high-risk pregnancy. However, the woman and her husband had left the hospital,” said the statement.
“The suggestion by the medical administration to make a limited advance payment was not heeded when advised admission to the hospital. Due to the unfortunate death of the patient, misleading statements were being made,” it added.
However, Tanisha suffered complications and had to be shifted to Manipal Hospital. According to Manipal Hospital, she received emergency care at the previous hospital, where interventions were initiated to stabilise her, and address severe complications.
“The patient had developed severe pre-eclampsia, which led to antepartum hemorrhage and resulted in emergency obstetric complications including cardiac arrest, hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, and disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). Upon arrival at Manipal Hospitals, the patient’s condition remained extremely critical. Our medical team promptly initiated a comprehensive, multidisciplinary management plan, ensuring that every aspect of her care was addressed. The patient was successfully revived from the cardiac arrest; however, she eventually developed irreversible brain injury due to hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, causing her to succumb,” the hospital said in a statement Friday.
Doctors said throughout the process they adhered to established medical protocols and guidelines to provide the highest standard of care, and kept the patient’s best interest at the forefront. “We maintained transparent and empathetic communication with the family, providing regular updates and addressing their concerns,” the statement added.
