Report on Jaipur Golden deaths was preliminary, says Satyendar Jain

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain Friday termed as “preliminary” a four-member committee’s report that oxygen shortage could not be ascertained as the cause of 21 deaths at Jaipur Golden Hospital on April 23.

Responding to a query related to the report at a press conference, Jain said it was prepared in a day’s time. A committee formed subsequently, which was struck down by L-G Anil Baijal, would have examined the issue of oxygen deaths in detail, Jain said.

“The report you are talking about was about one case. And that report was prepared in a day. The one they prepared, you can call it a preliminary report. For the final report, we had formed a committee which would have examined all the cases like Batra. The Indian Express had a long story, many TV channels ran many stories. The Centre scrapped the committee through the L-G,” Jain told reporters.

On May 16, The Sunday Express had carried 28 profiles of people who lost their lives due to the lack of medical oxygen in hospitals across the country. Apart from Jaipur Golden, 12 deaths at Batra Hospital on May 1 were attributed by the hospital management to oxygen shortage.

The four-member committee, which was formed by the Delhi government on April 28 following a Delhi High Court order to file a report on deaths due to oxygen shortage, had submitted its report on May 2 based on a meeting that took place on April 29.

The committee prepared its report based on data from six private hospitals. It met on April 29. The HC, however, directed the Delhi government to file a report after “making inquiries from all hospitals and nursing homes on account of shortage of oxygen”.

The committee observed that out of the six hospitals that shared records with it, only Jaipur Golden claimed deaths had taken place in its facility due to oxygen shortage. However, the committee concluded that since hospital records do not indicate any shortage of oxygen, it could not be ascertained as the cause of death.

“As per the case records, all patients were given supplemental oxygen till resuscitation/death. There was no mention of shortage of oxygen in any of the case sheets and patients were given oxygen supplementation till last, based on the clinical requirement, as per records made available to the committee,” the report said.