Nose necrosis is one of the rarest complications in which the nose turns dark before the skin tissue peels off. However, it can be reconstructed medically.
Negotiations are on between a Hyderabad hospital and parents of a newborn boy suffering from nose necrosis.
The boy’s family is demanding that the Fernandez Hospital at Hyderguda open a joint bank account to ensure that the child gets proper treatment.
“The important question that crosses our mind is what if the hospital closes tomorrow. Where will we go,” Imran, the child’s father asked.
“The management has sought a day’s time to respond. Now, after initial talks, the management sought time till Friday (14 July) evening. They asked us to not worry, so my wife and I are expecting a positive outcome,” he told South First.
Imran added that the hospital would provide treatment to his child till he turns 14. The hospital, in a statement issued on 8 July, had said that it would provide all possible medical support to the child.
“The doctors said that a nose cap would be put on my son’s nose when he turns two. It would be changed every two years until he turns 14. Then a surgery would be performed. For this, they would put a fixed bank deposit in the child’s name,” Imran added.
The hospital had lodged a complaint against the child’s parents with the Narayanguda police earlier this week.
“The hospital authorities were asking the parents to take the child home but they were against it. So the hospital filed a complaint,” Narayanguda SHO G Srinivasu told South First.
Fernandez hospital statement. (twitter)
Imran said he and his wife wanted to clear the air over the baby’s medical treatment.
“Such a thing happened for the first time and it was completely shocking. We did not know what to do. We are scared to expose him to the normal environment. What if he catches an infection? Some days ago he caught a cold. Touching his nose hurts him,” Imran told South First earlier.
Arshiya Unnisa Khan, Imran’s wife, gave birth to the boy on 7 June at Fernandez Hospital.
A month after the newborn child was diagnosed with nose necrosis, the Naryanguda police registered a case of negligence against the hospital under Section 337 of the Indian Penal Code on 7 July.
The hospital held several rounds of discussions with the child’s parents to settle the matter. The hospital’s Public Relations Officer is yet to respond to South First‘s queries
The Naryanaguda police are awaiting the report of the Hyderabad District and Medical Healthcare Department, which is probing the incident.
“The board is checking whether medical negligence has led to the boy’s condition. We would decide on further action based on the board’s report. The report is expected in a few days,” SHO Srinivasu said on 12 July, after meeting Imran.
Imran’s family friend and Hyderabad-based social activist Shabaz Khan told South First that they would probe other options if the hospital did not meet their “essential” demands.
“It’s their duty to provide a guarantee to compensate this middle-class family. It is why we are seeking compensation amount apart from the medical treatment. But if they don’t, what other choice do we have other than to approach the Medical Council of India (MCI) in New Delhi and Hyderabad Consumer Forum,” Khan said.
Imran stated that that his son was born “healthy” and a doctor recommended to keep him in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for phototherapy — a light treatment — that went wrong.
However, the hospital claimed that the child was prematurely born, “seven weeks early, on 8 June, at just 33 weeks of gestation”.
It added that to provide the best medical facilities, the baby was given a respiratory distress treatment known as Nasal Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (nCPAP) to support the lungs.
The hospital reiterated that there was no negligence, only transparency throughout the “challenging journey”.
Managing Director of Fernandez Hospital and Senior Gynecologist Dr Evita Fernandez termed the incident “unfortunate” but denied any negligence.
But Imran and his wife claimed that the hospital staff did not pay proper attention while their son was undergoing phototherapy.
Phototherapy treatment (left) and The Nasal Continuous Positive Airway Pressure nCPAP treatment for respiratory distress. (Supplied)
“My son’s nose was turning red when I saw him after phototherapy in the NICU. The duty doctors said that it would be fine, but after 2-3 days, while cleaning the nose, my son’s skin peeled off,” Imran had said earlier.
“The NICU head doctor said that the nose was recovering from the damage caused due to excessive heating during phototherapy and again I believed their version,” he added.
On 22 June, the child’s nose turned black and a part of it was removed. “When I consulted the doctors, they admitted that it had happened due to negligence. They said that they would provide medical assistance and would bear the medical expenses,” he contended.
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