Jaipur/Kota: A 20-year-old woman died in the labour room of Zenana Hospital in Bundi Sunday shortly after delivering a baby boy, triggering a protest by family members who alleged medical negligence.Nisha Meena was admitted to the govt-run hospital on Aug 7 with labour pain, even though her estimated date of delivery was Aug 31. Hospital officials said she gave birth Sunday through normal delivery, and doctors in attendance did not report any excessive postpartum bleeding.Her condition, however, turned critical soon after and she collapsed after complaining of severe chest pain. Despite resuscitation efforts by a medical team that included senior doctors, she could not be revived, officials said.The baby too developed some complications after birth but is currently in good health, the officials added.In response to the incident, all labour room nursing and support staff who were on duty at the time were transferred. A formal inquiry has been ordered, while a mandatory Maternal Death Audit involving three gynaecologists will be conducted to establish the exact sequence of events, officials said.“Doctors had advised the patient’s family to go for a cesarean section, but they chose not to. She was taken to the labour room Sunday morning, where she developed complications and died after giving birth to a baby boy,” said Zenana Hospital’s acting principal medical officer Dr Govind Gupta.Authorities suspect the cause of death to be amniotic fluid embolism — a rare but fatal medical condition in which foetal fluid enters the mother’s bloodstream, leading to lung complications, heart failure and sudden collapse.“It is a rare but severe medical emergency. We suspect that’s what happened in this case because the woman complained of severe chest pain before collapsing,” Dr Gupta said, while denying any medical negligence in the case.Following the incident, family members staged a protest at the hospital, accusing doctors of carelessness and demanding action against those responsible. They refused to allow the body to be moved out of the labour room for several hours and also stopped an ambulance that was meant to shift it.“We demand an impartial inquiry into the entire matter and action against the doctor found responsible,” one of Nisha’s attendants, Rakesh Meena, said.As the protest intensified, police and administrative officials reached the hospital. Kotwali police and personnel from nearby stations had to be deployed at the hospital and its main gate as a precautionary measure.
