For failing to diagnose the actual illness of a three-year-old girl for nearly eleven months — who was later found to be suffering from a malignant tumor in her abdomen — the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Chandigarh, has directed two private child care clinics in Chandigarh and Mohali, along with their doctors, to pay a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the victim for medical negligence.
The child’s father, in his complaint, mentioned that his daughter began suffering from severe abdominal pain, weakness, vomiting, nausea, constipation, and a persistent dry cough in December 2017. Concerned, he took her to the Child Care Centre (Morning Clinic) in Chandigarh, where the doctors kept prescribing medicines one after another without ordering any diagnostic or blood tests — despite the child’s continuing pain and deteriorating condition.
According to the complaint, the child remained under treatment at the clinic from December 29, 2017, to December 3, 2018, yet no diagnosis was made during this period. The father stated that despite regular visits and evident symptoms, the doctor failed to identify the underlying disease.
When the child failed to improve, her father approached Dr Pandove’s Family Clinic, in Mohali, on December 20, 2018, with complaints of dry cough, irritability, constipation, nausea, vomiting, and acute abdominal pain. The doctor at this clinic was informed about the previous treatment and was aware that the child had been unwell since December 2017. However, no diagnostic tests were recommended initially, and the clinic too continued to prescribe medicines, the complainant alleged.
It was only in February 2019, after the child’s condition worsened further, that the doctor at Dr Pandove’s Family Clinic advised an abdominal ultrasound. The test revealed a possible tumour in the stomach, which, as per the complainant, was in a critical state and could have ruptured at any time. The child was then referred to the PGIMER, Chandigarh, where she was diagnosed with a Teratoma Malignant Germ Cell Tumour and has since been undergoing treatment.
The complainant alleged that both clinics displayed gross medical negligence by failing to diagnose the tumour at an early stage despite repeated visits over several months. He maintained that if timely diagnostic tests had been carried out, the disease could have been detected and treated much earlier, preventing the child’s prolonged suffering.
In its defense, the Child Care Centre, through Dr Anil Malhotra, argued that diagnostic tests are generally recommended only when a child develops complications, which, according to them, were not present in this case. The clinic also claimed that the complainant had failed to ensure proper follow-up visits and that the child was only brought in for minor ailments like seasonal fever, cough, and cold. The clinic maintained that if the child had been seriously ill, the parents would not have delayed visits for over a month and a half.
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Similarly, Dr Pandove’s Family Clinic, represented by Dr Rashmi Pandove, contended that there were long gaps in the follow-up consultations, which indicated that the complainant himself had been negligent and failed to adhere to medical advice. The clinic denied any wrongdoing, stating that it followed proper medical protocol by prescribing suitable medicines and suggesting diagnostic tests, including ultrasound, when necessary. It maintained that the complainant’s casual and non-cooperative approach contributed to the delay in diagnosis.
However, after hearing both sides, the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission rejected the defences presented by the two clinics. The panel observed that if the doctors had conducted proper clinical examinations and relevant diagnostic tests at the earliest stage, the tumour could have been detected much sooner, allowing timely medical intervention.
In its order, the commission stated that both clinics had “failed to conduct the required diagnostic tests to identify the actual disease,” and that this failure led to a significant delay in diagnosis and treatment. It emphasized that the condition of the child deteriorated over a period of thirteen months, during which emergency measures were delayed.
“This not only amounts to deficiency in service but also medical negligence,” the commission ruled, adding that the child’s condition was not as severe when she was first brought to the clinics but worsened considerably by the time she was finally referred to PGIMER.
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Holding both clinics and their respective doctors jointly liable, the consumer panel directed them to pay a total compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the child for suffering from physical as well as mental trauma, due to their negligence.
