1. An Attendant’s Account
The view from the other side of the hospital bed
Patient’s Name: Asha Sachdev
Date of Birth: 28th April, 1945
Died on: 8th September 2012
Survived by: Husband, three
daughters

2. Medical History
Patient Admitted to Max Hospital, Noida on
12th August’2012 for laparoscopic surgery of gallbladder
removal
Expired on..
8th September 2012 from septicaemia, acute respiratory
distress syndrome (ARDS) and multiple organ failure
Cost of Laparoscopic Surgery
Rs 30,000
Patient’s Final Medical Bill
Rs 12 lakh, one month’s hospital stay, the loss of a life and a
family torn apart by grief and despair

3. What Went Wrong?
• The surgeon, Dr D S Bhamrah
NEVER LISTENED
• He DID NOT make patient’s
family partners in her care.
• He took NO CONSENT for
additional procedures
(Intestinal adhesiolysis).
• He kept the patient in the OT
for FOUR and a Half Hour,
when it should have taken
Memories of Happier Times him one hour.

4. The Patient Had a Stroke..
She gestured to her daughter to fetch her a pen and
paper.
Sensing something alarming, she tried to explain that
she could not move her right limb but the nursing
staff paid no heed.
Almost an hour later, in response to the patient’s
persistent complaints , a doctors team was
summoned - but by then the maximum damage was
already done.

5. Unanswered Questions
• Intestinal Adhesiolysis is an elective procedure, not
an emergency intervention?
• Knowing that the patient was hypertensive and
diabetic, why did Dr Bhamrah carry out Intestinal
Adhesiolysis without the patient’s or her family’s
consent? Was is to jack up the hospital bill?
• Why was no neurosurgeon called? Even if Max did
not have one on its roll, the family would have
happily paid the fee of an external consultant?

6. No Treatment for Four Days
Max, NOIDA did
not have a CT scan
machine so for
almost four days,
the patient received
no treatment for
her stroke.

7. Strong Evidence of Culpability
• At the time of discharge, Max
billed the family for Rs
4,1,7045.85. Very
condescendingly, they waived
off the surgical cost (Rs 30883)
of the second procedure and
cancelled a bunch of Dr
Bhamrah’s visitation charges.
Asha Sachdev with The family was only provided
her daughters and the final “doctored” bill.
granddaughters in
Mussourie

8. No One to Decode Medical
Gobbledygook
‘Septicemia’ was mentioned
for the first time on the
patient’s discharge slip.
Both septicemia and
ARDS that the patient
developed are post-
surgical complications,
related to hospital hygiene
factors.

9. Who Was Asha Sachdev?
She was a 67-year old
wife and mother to three
daughters.
Health-conscious and very
disciplined in her eating
habits, she never missed
a day’s exercise even
when she was on a
vacation!

10. Full of Life…
Last year on a family vacation in Mussourie, we pushed
Mama into attempting ‘flying fox’ adventure stunt and
at 66, she gamely obliged 

11. 24-hour Vigil Outside the ICU
For almost a month, the
patient’s family hung on
to every word the doctors
said.
They sought answers but
none were provided.
At best, the doctors were
nonchalant. At worst, they
looked hugely
embarrassed (!) aloof and
clinically detached.

12. Meanwhile…
• The unconscious figure on the bed,
hooked to ventilator - gradually slipped
from our hands.
• Each day, drop by drop, life ebbed out
of her.
• There came a time when she stopped
acknowledging her daughter’s presence
with a smile or a gentle squeeze of their
hands when it was placed in hers.

13. A Pathetic Track Record
We have met three ex-
patients of the surgeon,
who have similar
experiences. “If you
decide to sue him, we are
with you,” they told us.
A legal notice has been
served to Max Hospital
and Dr D S Bhamrah.

14. I Wrote to the ARDS Foundation
And promptly received a reply from
Eileen Rubin, the President of the
ARDS Foundation (
http://www.ardsusa.org/), who is
herself an ARDS survivor.
Later, when I broke the news of my
mother’s death, she wrote back “I
am so sorry for your loss. I know
how much she was loved and how
much you fought for her. The world
is a poorer place... ”Eileen.

15. In Hindsight…
When you choose a hospital for your
patient, especially for a surgical
intervention, go to one with full
infrastructure
Seek ex-patient’s references
Comb the net for the surgeon’s track record
Don’t be afraid to ask questions, even when
the doctor’s answers are vague or evasive

16. Thank You!