Mother, baby die; negligence alleged

Ahmedabad: The family of a 34-year-old woman accused medical staff at a hospital of negligence and alleged that it caused her death and that of her newborn child.
Madhavpura police registered cases of accidental death and have sought postmortem reports to ascertain if the deaths were indeed due to negligence.
According to Madhavpura police, Lata Rawat, 34, a resident of Tawdipura, Madhavpura, was rushed to Krishna Maternity Hospital near Dhobi Ghat on April 10 by her husband Arun and others as her water had broken and she was in pain.When they reached the hospital, they learned that the doctor was not at the hospital.
"The delivery was conducted by nurses and midwives at the hospital at around 5.30 pm. After the birth, the child was not breathing and the nurses advised that the child be taken to a neonatal intensive care unit, where a ventilator would be available. The family took the child to Civil Hospital but it was declared brought dead," said a Madhavpura police official.
Lata, who was unconscious after the delivery, was also rushed to Civil Hospital at 8.30 pm where she too was declared brought dead.
M B Khileri, inspector of Madhavpura police station, said they are awaiting the postmortem reports to ascertain what caused both the deaths. "A case against the doctor will be registered if negligence is found to be the cause," he said.