There is no easy way to understand death but when it comes after prolonged suffering, it brings with it release for the one who departs. It leaves behind a sense of emptiness because a life has ended. It leaves behind the fullness of grief that in time finds solace in a sense of closure. There is no easy way to deal with the death of a loved one. There is no way back into life and living and no way out of loss. It is something each one of us has to figure and come to terms with. The all absorbing rituals at this time help. You say your prayers. You go through the funeral and its aftermath. You say your goodbyes to the loved one, surrounded by a supportive family and friends. But how do you deal when even this is denied to you? When there is no closure?
**
The family of Lt. Col. Sohan Lal is grappling with the shock of not just his death but the bizarre circumstances that denied them the chance to consign his body to flames. He was admitted to the HDU (High Dependency Unit) of the Baptist Hospital in Bangalore on December 18, 2013. He passed away on the afternoon of December 24, 2013. This family of doctors and academicians is close-knit and keeps a low profile and the diverse lives of the three sons and a daughter have taken them to different cities. On the day that Lt.Col Sohan Lal expired, his eldest son was travelling to Delhi and the other two sons were in Gujarat and on a foreign assignment respectively.
**
The deceased was being looked after by his two daughters- in- law along with a close family friend. As they wanted the last rites to be done in the presence of the entire family , they asked the ward authorities whether there was a facility in the hospital to preserve the body for 48 hours to allow all the members to travel to Bangalore. The nursing staff informed that such a facility was available in the hospital and they would make the arrangements and shift and keep the body in the hospital mortuary till December 26, 2013.
**
The body was shifted to the hospital mortuary by the staff in the presence of the daughters-in-law and kept in chamber number 3 and the two women again informed that the family would come to take the body on December 26. The nurse from the ward mentioned that on the designated day (December 26), the family would be required to come to the ward first and then a nurse would accompany them to the mortuary where the body would be handed over after the completion of formalities. Other than an entry in a register, no token or receipt was issued. On December 26, as instructed the family went to the ward first where a nurse told them that they would have to pay the required fee at the mortuary. When the group reached the mortuary, the attender strangely opened Chamber 4 instead of chamber 3 and showed a body to the family. Shock and utter disbelief gripped the family when they realised that the body being shown to them was that of a stranger.
**
When the same was conveyed to the authorities, they explained away the absence of the body in question by saying that sometimes the freezer changes human features! The family insisted that the deceased had an infected arm and a tattoo and the body being passed to them had neither. Moreover their father also had an implanted pacemaker which the family had agreed to donate to the hospital and it was removed, but on this body there was no mark on the chest. The ward nurse was also convinced that this was not the body and it only then that the mortuary staff realized their mistake. They said then that there was another body which was claimed and taken on the morning of December 25. The family then asked the nurse to call the higher authorities but instead, a supervisor was called.
**
One of the sons who travelled from abroad to be with the family says, ” Then one after another various minor functionaries came but when we insisted the top management officials came after a considerable time. Meanwhile the mortuary officials called the person whom they assumed would have taken the body of our father and found out that it had already been cremated on December 25. They instructed the person to bring the ashes to the hospital. The hospital in-charge came said it was unfortunate that such a thing had happened. We told him that we wanted to know what happened to the body of our father and just how were we supposed to ascertain if the body cremated the previous day was that of our father. More over without a cremation certificate in his name it is not possible to get a death certificate from the Corporation which is necessary for all official procedures. We requested them to call the police to verify what had happened and to arrange to establish the identity of the ashes by DNA testing or other means. They were very reluctant to call the police and agreed after more of our family members gathered and started arguing with them.”
**
He continues, ” Then the area police inspector and his team also arrived. After ascertaining the facts , the police inspector asked us to come to the Hebbal police station to record our statement. We went to the police station and gave a written complaint asking them to investigate the matter and identify and return the remains of our father for the religious rites. The police took our complaint and told us they would keep the ashes in their custody and keep us updated about the investigations. By the time we came out there were many TV reporters with cameras but we came away without making any statement as we were very upset. At no time we had any argument or settlement with the persons presumed to have taken the body of our father because we first wanted to have the identity established and at no time were the ashes handed over to us as has been incorrectly reported by many newspapers. We have not lodged any complaint against those persons. All of our friends and well wishers had already started gathering at the crematorium and the hearse van was arranged and was waiting at the mortuary to take the body to the crematorium. We had to cancel all the arrangements. All the relatives and children who had come from all over the country and abroad could not get an opportunity to pay their respects to our father and perform the last rites. It was such an emotional issue for us but for the hospital it was only an issue of outsourcing. ”
**
He adds, “The points we wish to make are:
1. How can the hospital absolve itself of any responsibility by saying they have outsourced the mortuary to an outside entity when the nurses took the responsibility of moving the body there and assured us they would also hand over the body on December 26. Moreover the mortuary is in the hospital campus and it has a display sign which includes the name of the hospital (BBH- ST.Peter’s). Even if the hospital has outsourced the running of mortuary to an outside entity it is their responsibility to ensure that sufficient checks and balances are in place to prevent any errors. We were very satisfied with the medical care given by the hospital but were disappointed by their attitude on this issue.
2. We have no proof that the ashes brought belong to our father since foul play cannot be ruled out. Hence we insist on scientific identification and the hospital and police should be compelled to do this.
3. A death certificate from the Municipal authorities is a legal requirement to enable our mother (who is unwell) to get family pension and also for various other legal formalities. A cremation certificate is mandatory for this. Hence the hospital/police should obtain a cremation certificate after ascertaining the identity.
4. The hospital should at least agree to the lapses in its system and take corrective measures so that noone in the future has to undergo such agony as we have undergone. What has been done to us cannot be undone but at least the hospital can desist from making such callous remarks that they are not responsible.”
And so what should have been a time of mourning and healing for a family has been reduced to a scene from a bad suspense novel with the media coming up with multiple versions, the hospital authorities trying to defend their name and the police wondering who to pin the blame upon. A family in the meanwhile may never recover from the shock of what has happened. This statement is their attempt to find some closure, and make some sense of an utterly incomprehensible situation.
At the outset, condolences to family of Lt Col Sohanlal Sir, a thorough gentleman that he was.
I would meet him at the polyclinic where he would come in a blue electric car to collect his monthly medicine.
It is very unfortunate that the family had to suffer the ordeal because of the blunders commited by hospital authorities, my personal opinion is that Hospital should be sued and be ripped off its “SuperSpeciality Hospital Status”
I also heard that the police had a tough time to decide which sections of IPC/CrPC was the hospital to booked with, apparently this was one of a kind case that they had dealt with, which also brings the much wanted demand for better revisions in the procedure codes which are almost obsolete.
Cases like these should strengthen the long standing demand of ethical practises by healthcare providers.
REST IN PEACE Lt Col Sohan Lal Sir.
Detailed writeup by Reema Moudgil, good Job done.