G Bala Sundararaj, a resident of Murappanadu in Thoothukudi, claimed that on August 26, 2024, he was hit by a car driven by a health department employee while returning home from a temple. He lost consciousness, and the staff member reportedly admitted him to TvMCH before leaving the hospital.
Sundararaj further alleged that he did not receive proper treatment at TvMCH, forcing him to seek care at a private hospital in Madurai, where he remained unconscious for several weeks. When he later went to retrieve his vehicle from the police, he was informed that he had been intoxicated at the time of the accident. Sundararaj, who identifies as a teetotaller, was shocked by the claim.
Seeking clarity, Sundararaj filed a Right to Information (RTI) application to obtain his medical records. He discovered that a TvMCH doctor had written “breath smells of alcohol” on his report. When Sundararaj requested his blood test report for verification under the RTI Act, the TvMCH administration allegedly refused to provide it. Sundararaj also claimed that when he approached the Dean of the hospital, Dr. C Revathy Balan, to seek help, she refused to meet him.
This is not the first time TvMCH has faced allegations of false medical reporting. In 2023, Dhana Sakthi, a beedi roller from Anaiyappapuram village in Tenkasi, accused a doctor at the hospital of falsely stating in her son B Aravinth's postmortem report that he had consumed alcohol before his death. Aravinth was one of three laborers killed in a farm accident. The claim allegedly cost her crucial compensation, and her repeated requests for a re-examination of the report were ignored.
Dean Dr. C Revathy Balan responded that she would order an inquiry into the allegations raised by Sundararaj.
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash/Dr. Sreelekshmi P/MSM)