NHRC notice to Bihar govt over reports of patients losing eye after 'botched-up' cataract surgeries
New Delhi, Dec 1: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday sent a notice to the Bihar government over reports that eyes of some patients had to be removed allegedly due to "botched-up" cataract surgeries done recently at a hospital in Muzaffarpur, officials said.
In a statement, the NHRC said it has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report that the "eyes of six patients had to be removed at Shri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH) due to botched up cataract surgeries at Muzaffarpur Eye Hospital on November 22."
Doctors may need to remove the eyes of more patients due to infections after the surgery, the rights panel said while observing that the contents of the media report, if true, raise a serious issue of human rights violation.
"According to medical protocol, a doctor can conduct up to 12 surgeries. But in this case, the doctor conducted surgery on 65 patients," it said.
The NHRC observed that conducting eye surgeries in such a "reckless manner violating medical protocols" is a "serious matter of concern".
Accordingly, the panel has issued a notice to the chief secretary, Government of Bihar, seeking a detailed report, the NHRC statement said.
"The report is expected to inform about the exact number of patients who have lost their eyes, status of the medical treatment being provided to them and the relief provided by the state government, including action against the responsible officers /doctors. The response is expected within four weeks," it said.
According to media reports on December 1, in most of the cases, the "cornea of the patients is badly damaged and there are chances that the infection could reach their brains", the statement said.
"The condition of six patients is very serious. The hospital authorities tried to hush up the matter and did not inform the district administration or the state health department till an inquiry was conducted.
"The authorities have, reportedly, stopped activities in the Muzaffarpur Eye Hospital and a team of the doctors, headed by ACMO is conducting investigation in the matter," it added.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
