A nursing home in Khardah will have to pay Rs 5 lakh that a patient had to spend for a “curative surgery” and treatment in another hospital, the chairperson of West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission said on Friday.

Keshab Chandra Das, 45, of North 24-Parganas, was admitted to Green View Nursing Home in Khardah in February 2019 because of abdomen pain.

“He was to undergo an appendix operation but the operation could not be done and during the process it resulted in a perforation in the colon. After two days, the patient was moved to a higher set up and another surgery had to be done,” said retired judge Ashim Banerjee, the chairperson of the commission.

Das was treated in Charnock Hospital where he had to spend Rs 5 lakh.

“We asked for the medical documents from Charnock Hospital, which was a prolonged treatment. During the course of the hearing both the surgeon and owner of Green View Nursing Home was present and they offered to pay the amount that the patient had to spend later for treatment. The patient left it on us to take a decision so we settled the matter,” said Banerjee.

He said the nursing home authorities would pay the amount in six instalments starting from April.

“It will be Rs 80,000 in the first five instalments and Rs 1 lakh in the last instalment,” said Banerjee.

In another case, in Tehatta Nursing Home in Nadia they have to pay Rs 50,000 because of negligence in treatment.

A pregnant women was admitted in the nursing home for which they took Rs 10,000 and according to the patient’s family, the doctor at the nursing home had told them that she was fine, Banerjee said.

But the next morning they shifted her to another place. Though the mother is fine the child was pronounced dead at the other place, said Banerjee.

“The patient’s family had alleged that the nursing home denied taking Rs 10,000 and if the patient’s condition was not fine then why was she kept in the hospital,” he said.

“The nursing home’s version is that the patient was admitted and the doctor had seen her. She was critical so they recommended her to a higher set up but the patient party did not take her and so they had to keep her for the night. Next morning the nursing home arranged for an ambulance and sent her to another place,” said Banerjee.

“But we found negligence on part of the nursing home authorities and have told them to return Rs 10,000 and also give Rs 40,000 as compensation because they themselves admitted that there was no treatment during the night. Also, during the hearing they said the nursing home has shut down. So, we took a note of it and told them that it should be kept shut,” said Banerjee.