Jaipur: In yet another troubling case of alleged medical negligence, a 23-year-old pregnant woman from Tonk district died at Sawai Man Singh (SMS) Hospital, Jaipur, following a suspected mismatched blood transfusion. This marks the third such fatality at the state-run hospital since February 2024.
According to reports, the woman was admitted on May 12 in critical condition, suffering from extremely low haemoglobin, miliary tuberculosis, and other complications. A blood transfusion was administered on May 20, based on initial tests identifying her blood group as A+. However, a subsequent test allegedly indicated her blood type was B+, raising serious concerns of a transfusion error.
The woman succumbed on May 22 after experiencing classic symptoms of an acute transfusion reaction, including fever, chills, haematuria (blood in urine), and tachycardia (rapid heartbeat).
Her family has claimed they were not informed about the suspected error. “We had no knowledge about the wrong blood transfusion,” said Prem Prakash, the deceased’s brother-in-law, speaking to The New Indian Express.
Denying wrongdoing, Dr. Swati Shrivastava, the treating physician, stated, “I was on leave at the time. I was later informed the patient reacted during transfusion. She was already severely ill with miliary TB and complications following an intrauterine fetal demise.”
In light of the allegations, Medical Education Secretary Ambrish Kumar convened an emergency meeting with Dr. Deepak Maheshwari, Principal of SMS Medical College, and other senior officials. A three-member inquiry committee—comprising the additional principal and the heads of the departments of medicine and transfusion medicine—has been formed to investigate the matter.
The committee has been directed to scrutinize the entire transfusion chain, including sample collection, labeling, testing, and administration, and submit its findings by Monday.
The Rajasthan State Human Rights Commission has also taken cognizance of the case and sought a detailed factual report from SMS Medical College by June 12.
This latest case follows two earlier incidents at SMS Hospital, including the death of a 23-year-old road accident victim in February and a 10-year-old child who was left in critical condition—both allegedly due to transfusion errors.
