When 64-year-old Avtar Kaur went to get dental implants, she thought she’d return with a shiny, white smile. Instead, the smile was wiped off her face altogether after the doctor botched the procedure, leaving her toothless and unable to chew any food for nearly 1.5 years. The fact that the doctor was a family friend who shrugged off all responsibility made the betrayal even harsher.
Before the surgery took place last year, Avtar had just 18 teeth, but was still able to chew her meals. But due to the worsening state of her teeth, the Andheri resident decided to consult a dentist. Last January, she visited Gurukripa Medical Trust’s Dr Jyoti Kaur Oberoi, a paediatric and preventive dentist who was also her daughter’s childhood friend.
Dr Jyoti recommended a dental implant to replace Avtar’s natural teeth – a procedure that would cost R1,40,000. As a widow, Avtar has no source of income and she currently lives with her father (aged 93) and her son and daughter. However, the family agreed to pay for the procedure.
The procedure was done under the guidance of Dr Jyoti, who first removed half of Avtar’s natural teeth on January 26, 2016. A month later, the remaining teeth were also pulled out and the pillars (metal screws) were embedded in her gums. Even after several weeks, Avtar was in severe pain and the doctors were unable to attach the new dentures. Shockingly, not only did they fail to diagnose the problem, but they allegedly also began to harass the family for more money.
‘Emotional trauma’
“I was in so much pain, I decided to take a second opinion. But they refused to hand over my treatment files and started abusing us. After that emotional trauma, the very same day my blood pressure skyrocketed,” recalled Avtar.
“Due to the faulty implant, my mother has been on liquid diet all this time, and has been unable to eat anything. She has lost so much weight and has become very weak,” said her daughter, Sukhjeet Bhatti.
Irreparable?
Meanwhile, the family struggled to find a doctor who was willing to take on Avtar’s case, because of how badly the dental implants had been botched.
They even went to well-known dentist Dr Milind Karmakar from Om Dental Clinic in Khar West, whose report stated: “The placement of the implant is not restorable, as the positioning is incomplete and not responsible clinically. The patient is referred back to doctor who did the implant placement.”
“No doctor was ready to treat my mother due to the improper dental implant, until St George Hospital came forward to help recently,” said Sukhjeet.
Cops ‘checked’ X-Ray
The family had gone to the MIDC police station to file an FIR for medical negligence, but were allegedly turned away by the cops. In any medical negligence case, the reports have to be sent to a state-run panel of experts. However, in this case, the MIDC police decided on their own that there was nothing wrong with the medical procedure.
Sub-Inspector Sham Ahire – who has no medical expertise – said, “There was no truth in the complaints filed, so we didn’t file an FIR. We had seen the X-Ray and it looked fine.”
“We haven’t given any clean chit on the claims of medical negligence. And how can you claim it is negligence? Did anyone die? We asked the complainant to ask the dental council to investigate the matter.”
The cop then called back to add, “They complained to us only about the procurement of the documents, not about medical negligence. And we helped them in getting the documents.”
However, Avtar and her daughter maintained that the police had refused to file a medical negligence FIR. They also added they have so far only received half the medical reports.
The report of Avtar’s treatment plan is yet to be procured.
The cops are supposed to forward the case to the Government Dental College for investigation, but the dean, Dr Mansingh Pawar, confirmed: “For the investigation, it is up to the dental council. The police have not sent any letter to look into the matter.”
The elderly woman has now complained to with the Maharashtra Medical Council, Dental Council of India, State dental council and Women Council of India.
The other side
“They don’t want to pay the bill and that’s why they are doing all this. Next week, we are going to send a defamation notice for making false allegations. Firstly, they sent a notice threatening to move the consumer court, but didn’t respond to our reply. Later, they started harassing my client,” said Dr Jyoti Kaur Oberoi’s lawyer, Saurabh Mehta.
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