Opinion

Mr. Minoo P. Bhandara’s Death
By Nasira Iqbal
Chairperson,
Board of Trustees
Bhandara Foundation

Mr. Minoo P. Bhandara, former minister and MNA, met with a car accident on 23rd April 2008, in China. He was immediately flown to a Hospital in Urumqchi, the nearest big city, where he was given instant and appropriate medical treatment including the placement of a plate in his broken shin bone. His son Isphanyar, and his colleagues Major Sabi and Mr. Fazal flew over to be with him, and accompanied him to Pakistan on May 7th, where he was admitted at CMH in Rawalpindi. On May 15th he asked to be moved to Shifa International Hospital Islamabad. He was confident that he would be given the best possible medical care at Shifa, because he had a personal relationship with the hospital as a patient and a benefactor. Mr. Bhandara remained in the hospital for a month, during which time both he and his family were assured that his condition was improving but he passed away on 15th June, 2008.
The Trustees of the Bhandara Foundation wish to draw the attention of the Management of Shifa International Hospital to several facts pertaining to Mr. Bhandara’s treatment and care. We would appreciate an early response to our concerns.

Patients and their families have a right to be informed about the patient’s condition. While Mr. Bhandara’s condition was steadily deteriorating, his family and he were being constantly assured by the attending doctors that he was progressing well. The family was totally misled as to Mr. Bhandara’s dire condition and they were shocked when they were suddenly informed that he had slipped into unconsciousness and was unlikely to recover.
The patient’s right to seek a second opinion is universally recognized by the medical profession. Mr. Bhandara himself wanted a second opinion, but his family was afraid of offending the doctors. However, Mr. Bhandara’s sister, Bapsi Sidhwa, the famous Pakistani novelist, who lives in Houston, a city famous for its medical center, was anxious to know the prognosis of her brother’s case. She telephoned Dr. Khalid Aslam, the surgeon in-charge of Mr. Bhandara’s case, requesting him to kindly send a CD with X-rays of the fractured leg with a report detailing the procedures and treatment that had taken place while Mr. Bhandara was under his care at Shifa; she requested that the report be sent to her or to Dr. Sohrab Sidhwa, who had previously worked at Shifa Hospital and is currently attached to a hospital in Boston. Mrs. Sidhwa also wanted her brother to consult a doctor at Shaukat Khanum Hospital, whose name had been recommended to her as a bone and infection specialist. Despite repeated promises by Dr. Khalid Aslam, the report was never sent. On arrival in Pakistan, Bapsi Sidhwa was astonished to be told by her nephew that Dr. Khalid Aslam had been offended by her requests for the reports and for a second opinion.
At Shifa, Mr. Bhandara was operated on thrice under general anesthesia to treat the shin-bone which had developed an infection. It is dangerous even for a young person to be anesthetized thrice within a period of 10 days let alone a man of 70 years, albeit a man fit enough to have climbed Miranjani mountain (Nathiagali) the year before. It is not surprising he developed a heart condition. Everybody’s heart collapses before one dies, but it is important to know what causes the heart condition.
Lack of proper nursing care: On one occasion Mr. Bhandara was left unattended for over two hours in the ICU while he pleaded for water. He told his friend Mr. Nadir Rahim that it had taken the ICU 10 hours to revive him the previous night and the next night it took 6 hours to revive him. Yet his family was told that all was well. Dr. Khalid Aslam was hardly ever available. He was either busy elsewhere or was away on business abroad without assigning his patient, Mr. Bhandara to the care of another specialist.
Lack of hydration for a patient suffering from vomiting and diarrhea: Furthermore, Mr. Bhandara had severe vomiting and diarrhea throughout his stay in the hospital. He was reprimanded for demanding food and water. On enquiry it was discovered he did not have a drip and when he finally collapsed and was taken to the ICU his body was dehydrated and depleted of potassium.
When a doctor takes the Hippocratic Oath, the patient’s welfare is the first priority, and to seek a second opinion is regarded not only as a normal request all over the world but frequently suggested by doctors. It is criminally negligent and arrogant not to facilitate a second opinion, specially, in the case of an infection that can easily invade the entire body with septicemia. We wonder why it was not suggested that his leg below the knee be amputated before it was too late and the infection had spread.

It is sad to think his life could have been saved if he had been provided better care or if he had been in a Hospital in the United States or Europe, where the lives of severely wounded and infected solders and accident victims are routinely saved.
The life of any human being should be of equal value to society. The Bhandara Foundation takes strong exception to the negligent treatment meted out to Mr. Bhandara, who was an intellectual, a philanthropist, and a compassionate person whose loss has created a vacuum in society. The Shifa International Hospital should tender an unconditional apology to the family of Mr. Bhandara and the Bhandara Foundation. The Hospital Administration should also take disciplinary action against the consultant surgeon whose gross negligence and absence caused the tragic death of Mr. Bhandara.
This letter is also being sent to major national dailies in Pakistan in order that it may be brought to the notice of the health department and Hospital Regulatory Authorities to closely monitor the conduct of doctors and staff of all public and private Hospitals in order to ensure unnecessary tragedies such as Mr. Bhandara’s do not occur. One member of the Bhandara Foundation brought to the notice of all the members that her relative was exposed to rat infection after heart surgery while she was in the ICU at Shifa Hospital - where personal attendants are not allowed. Cleanliness and hygiene is imperative for all Hospitals anywhere including rural health care facilities. It is the prime responsibility of the government to ensure that the public is not exposed to filth, neglect and rodents where they are being medically treated.
After-care is severely lacking in Shifa International Hospital as in most hospitals in Pakistan and infection is known to be rampant. Unless a conscientious surgeon personally supervises the care of a patient, the result can be fatal, as in the case of Mr. Bhandara.