‘Major lapses’: Health Commission orders closure of diagnostic centre in Baruipur

Kolkata: The West Bengal Clinical Establishment and Regulatory Commission (WBCERC) on Thursday directed the Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMoH) in South 24-Parganas to immediately shut down Accu Health diagnostic centre in Baruipur after the commission found major lapses on the part of the centre.

The WBCERC chairperson Justice (retired) Ashim Banerjee said that Saikat Ganguly, a local resident took his mother to the Accu Health diagnostic centre for Thyroglobulin Test.

Initially, the centre goofed up and performed another test. When the issue was taken up by the patient’s family the diagnostic centre carried out the test but the report was abnormal. While examining the report the WBCERC found that the Accu Health diagnostic centre had outsourced the test to another diagnostic centre without informing the patient party. The matter was not informed to the family members later as well.

The WBCERC found a shocking revelation that the diagnostic centre allegedly issued the test report on its own pad which was actually performed by another diagnostic centre. It also forged and used the digital signature of a doctor on its report pad illegally as the concerned doctor was never associated with Accu Health.

The concerned doctor has told the commission that she was not attached to the Accu Health diagnostic. The WBCERC has told the doctor that she can go to appropriate authorities against the centre. In a stern action the commission has asked the CMoH South 24-Parganas to shut down the centre immediately and directed Baruipur police to keep a tab on it so that it does not operate.

In another development, the WBCERC has imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on the Saroj Gupta Cancer Centre for not properly maintaining records for a particular period.

The hospital had allegedly not documented treatment records for 10 hours from 10 pm of a day to 8 am on the next day, as observed by the Commission. The patient

eventually died.