Cops at City Hospital in Cuttack. Picture by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, Aug. 26: A pregnant woman from the city died hours after she gave birth to a stillborn child at the City Hospital last night. This comes barely a month after the Orissa State Human Rights Commission sought a report on the alleged negligence in two separate incidents at the same hospital.

In yesterday’s incident, the deceased has been identified as Maju Nayak, 27, of Alisha Bazar area.

The rights panel had earlier sought a report from the chief district medical officer (CDMO) in connection with the death of a 65-year-old woman and another woman delivering a stillborn child near the veranda of the hospital due to negligence on part of medical staff in June.

On June 26, Joharan Bibi delivered a stillborn child near the veranda of the hospital after no medical staff attended to her. Though the doctors, after examining her, had advised her to undergo an ultrasound, the woman delivered the child near the gate when her mother had gone to buy some medicines.

Just 48 hours later, a 65-year-old woman, identified as K. Satyabhama of Pension Lane, died after she failed to seek medical attention on time.

In the latest incident, Maju Nayak died due to alleged negligence on part of the medical authorities yesterday. “We had admitted Maju at the hospital after she developed pain in her stomach around 6am yesterday. In the evening, she gave birth to a dead girl child and died within an hour,” said Suren Nayak, 36, her brother-in-law.

Suren said the doctor and other medical staff had asked them to get an ambulance and take her to SCB Medical College and Hospital after her condition deteriorated. The family members alleged the doctor did not attend to the patient after the delivery and that resulted in her death.

“If there is no ambulance and other facilities, why do the authorities admit patients and then ask them to shift to SCB?” said Savitri Nayak, 60, mother-in-law.

Following the incident, the relatives of the deceased, along with a few local residents, laid siege to the hospital. The situation was brought under control after police rushed to the spot and held talks with the agitators.

CDMO Manorama Dei said an inquiry had already begun into the fresh incident of alleged negligence of the attending doctor Snehalata Sahu.

“We are investigating the matter and there is some negligence involved. We will move government against the erring doctor,” Dei said adding that they would submit a report to the Orissa State Human Rights Commission on the previous incidents in four weeks.

The Commission has also asked petitioner advocate Subrat Mohapatra to submit documents and materials to facilitate inquiry by the commission in four weeks.