Forceps left in patient’s stomach for 5 years, Minister orders probe

A 30-year-old woman here has filed a complaint against doctors for having left forceps inside her body while performing a caesarean on her five years ago.

Acting on her compliant, Kerala State Health Minister Veena George on Saturday ordered a probe into the incident and asked the Health Secretary to submit a report soon. The doctors of Kozhikode Medical College had, on September 17, conducted a major surgery on Harshinia, a Kozhikode resident, to remove a ‘mosquito artery forceps’ which was in her stomach for the past five years.

The forceps is a scissor-like equipment used by surgeons to clamp bleeding vessels during surgeries.

”Stern action will be taken against those who are responsible,” Minister said in a statement.

The woman had undergone her third caesarean at Kozhikode Medical College in November 2017. The earlier two were in private hospitals, she said.

”After the third surgery, I began feeling severe pain. I thought it was due to the caesarean surgery. I approached many doctors…I thought either I had kidney stones or some sort of cancer,” she told reporters.

Harshina said the pain was subdued using strong antibiotics but it became unbearable since the last six months as she was suffering from urinary infection.

”Apparently, the metal object was poking my urinary bladder and was causing infection. The pain became unbearable,” she said. After scans, the doctors of a private hospital suspected that it was a kidney stone. ”But after the CT scan, they told me that there was a metal object in my stomach. They told me that it was poking my bladder and resulting in urinary infection. Doctors used to give me heavy antibiotics to reduce the pain,” she said. Later, she approached the government medical college here itself, and the doctors there took the forceps after a surgery.

Meanwhile, Kozhikode Medical College also ordered a probe.

”We have ordered a probe. After the preliminary inquiry, the medical college superintendent told me that none of their surgical equipment was missing. The woman has had two surgeries in private hospitals before coming to medical college,” Kozhikode Medical College principal Dr E V Gopi, told PTI.

After her surgery removing the surgical equipment that was in her stomach for the past five years, she was discharged in a few days. Later, she approached the State Health Minister and the Kozhikode Medical College, and filed a complaint in this regard.