After burns, two-month-old baby loses arm, may also lose ear

Hospital administration, civic officials unwilling to give compensation, baby's father worried about cost of providing for a special needs baby

Days after a two-month-old boy suffered burns from a fire that broke out in the ICU of KEM hospital in Parel, his arm had to be amputated from above the elbow on Monday. Much to the chagrin of the baby's family, the hospital administration is not planning to compensate them, despite his critical condition.

The baby boy, who is also suffering from a congenital heart defect and pneumonia, is in a critical condition was admitted at KEM hospital last week where he was being kept in a ventilator. After the fire broke out, the baby suffered 22 per cent burns on his left arm, shoulder and ear.

On Monday evening, plastic surgeons operated on Prince and amputated his left arm. Doctors from the plastic surgery department said that they gave Prince the same treatment that is given to all burn patients but the condition of the arm didn't improve. "Burn injuries take time to heal and the decision to amputate depends on the depth of the burn. The vascularity of the arm was poor and thus we had to amputate it," said a doctor from the plastic surgery department. The doctor added that the burn injuries on the ear are also as severe as the arm, hinting that Prince may lose his left ear as well.

Civic officials are treating the incident as an accident and even though it took place in the ICU of the hospital, neither the hospital administration nor the civic body is willing to give the family any compensation.

Pannelal Rajbhar, Prince's father, however, hoped that they will change their mind.

"We have been cooperating with the hospital. But now he has lost his arm and his life has changed forever. He will have special needs and I will have to work harder to be able to afford it. The hospital should take some responsibility for the incident and offer some financial help," he said.

Dr CT Deshmukh, the paediatrician overseeing Prince's care said that while his condition hasn't improved much, it hasn't worsened either. "We have been administering antibiotics and have been feeding him breast milk through tubes which he has tolerated. He has been in a critical condition from the start and he is still the same," he said, adding that they will try to gradually take him off the ventilator in a few days' time. Dr Deshmukh said that before coming to KEM hospital, Prince was admitted in a hospital in Uttar Pradesh for 10 days after which his weight reduced from 3.5 kg to 2.7 kg.

22 %
Proportion of burns Prince suffered

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