SHRC orders expert review of alleged treatment failure at RCC

The Kerala State Human Rights Commission has directed the Director of Medical Education (DME) to form a panel of expert doctors to probe allegations of medical negligence in the treatment of a nine-month-old baby with leukemia at the Regional Cancer Center (RCC).

The Commission issued the directive in a case registered suo motu based on media reports.

The panel was asked to conduct a comprehensive investigation to see if there had been any serious treatment failure.

The child’s parents, who are natives of Kollam, complained that an infection had developed on the child’s left arm, where the cannula was inserted. They claimed that the treating doctors ignored the infection, after which the child’s condition worsened, requiring ventilatory support.

The SHRC directed the DME to ensure that the panel included specialists capable of thoroughly assessing the complications suffered by the child. The investigation must reveal whether there has been a serious lapse in treatment. The panel should review RCC’s claim that the child’s condition worsened due to advanced leukemia and the parents’ claim that the cause of the child’s serious condition was a cannula-related infection.

The panel should review whether proper sterilization procedures were followed before the cannula was inserted, whether tests were performed to identify the cause of the infection, and what the test results revealed.

Complete records of the infant’s treatment must be reviewed and statements from physicians and other personnel involved, including the nurse who inserted the cannula, must be recorded.

The panel should submit a report on the DME investigation within a month. The DME should submit the report along with relevant records to the SHRC within five weeks, the SHRC chairman said.

The RCC director was asked to submit a separate report to the Commission within five weeks, including a report on the hospital’s internal investigation into the incident.

The SHRC directed the Deputy DME and a senior medical officer representing the RCC Director to attend the meeting at the Commission’s headquarters on January 5.

Published – 10 Nov 2026 20:09 IST