Tinasha’s parents accuse hospital of malpractice
| March 5, 2015
The family of the deceased teenager questions the documents released by the insurance company and Assunta Hospital.
PETALING JAYA: The family of Tinasha Ganesan Rao who died suddenly at Assunta Hospital last November, is suspicious that the hospital had intentionally delayed concluding their daughter’s death in order to hike up the medical insurance fees.
Tinasha was 14 when she passed away at Assunta Hospital on November 21 with her family by her side, after being declared brain dead for four days at the hospital. She was brain dead within eight hours of admission after suffering fits.
In a press conference today, the family presented the media several documents to corroborate their suspicions that the hospital had overcharged on the procedures and products used to supposedly test Tinasha’s condition.
“Why did they delay in confirming that she was brain dead?” asked Ramesh Inthirarasa, Tinasha’s uncle. “They only reassured us that she would be fine. ‘We will try our level best.’ Those were their words,” he said.
“Instead, they kept her body alive unnecessarily, and prolonged our agony. A person certified to be brain dead is dead. No two ways about it. But they delayed pronouncing her death.”
The documents presented included the insurance papers, the police report, the medical report and records released to the family by Assunta Hospital on the orders of CKAPS (Private Medical Practice Control Section under the Health Ministry), and the Malaysian Medical Council guidelines on brain death.
Ramesh referred to the Malaysian Medical Council guidelines regarding brain death, and pointed out that “non-recognition (of brain death) either through ignorance or choice can be construed as unethical”.
Ramesh presented copies of the itemised hospital bill that the family had managed to obtain from their insurance company, saying that they found many of the items in it to be suggestive of overcharging.
Cross-referencing that with a copy of the medical report by hospital chief executive officer Peter Leong, he cited a CT scan they had performed on Tinasha, questioning the need for it as the MMC guidelines were clear that brain death diagnosis is a clinical one and no confirmatory test was necessary.
“They performed three tests. We didn’t even know that they had done the third test until we saw the medical report.”
He also pointed out that the hospital had claimed insurance for the administering of medicine that was already her own, i.e. not originally prescribed by the hospital.
“They charged RM52.56 just to give her own Keppra medicine.
“They also charged a whole RM2,640 to give her injections of norepinephrine. How many injections did they give her to be able to charge that much?”
He again questioned whether an independent monitoring body existed to probe the standard operating procedures of such cases.
“We don’t want to prolong this case any longer than we should. But we feel that such things should be brought to light. Who knows if this has happened to anybody else?” said Ramesh.
According to an earlier report, Peter Leong had maintained that all hospital procedures were followed and that Tinasha’s nausea was treated with the usual medication for such cases.
Leong also said that the hospital was eagerly awaiting the results of the post-mortem so that everyone could know for certain what caused the girl’s sudden death.
Since her death three months ago in November, the post-mortem is yet to be released by Assunta Hospital.