Doctor held for not informing kin about patient's death, overcharging
A doctor was arrested in Maharashtra's Sangli district on Thursday for allegedly not disclosing to a woman's family for two days that she had died, and moreover overcharging them. The 60-year-old woman was admitted to Islampur's Adhar Healthcare Hospital in February this year. She died on March 8, but Dr. Yogesh Watharkar, the accused, did not inform her relatives immediately, said a police official.
Incident came to light when the death certificate was issued
Dr. Watharkar continued to "treat" the woman till March 10, according to the police official. "The accused told the woman's son that she died on March 10 and handed over the body," he added. The fraud came to light when the death certificate issued by the municipal corporation ten days later mentioned that she had died on March 8.
Discrepancies were revealed during inquiry by the hospital's medical board
"The woman's son questioned the doctor but did not receive any satisfactory reply, so he filed a police complaint," the police officer said. "We sent the case to the medical board of the government hospital and during their inquiry, discrepancies came to light," he added. The inquiry also revealed that the hospital had overcharged the family even for the actual treatment.
A similar incident was reported in Maharashtra in May
"We arrested Dr. Watharkar under IPC Sections 406 (breach of trust ), 420 (cheating), and 465 (forgery)," said the officer. A similar incident was reported in Maharashtra in May where a private hospital in Nanded was booked for allegedly taking money in the name of treatment from family members of a COVID-19 patient even after his death.
