Ex-patient's lawyers file evidence on malpractice

Ex-patient's lawyers file evidence on malpractice

JAKARTA (JP): Lawyers representing a woman who is suing a
doctor at Husada Hospital over an alleged case of negligence
submitted a list of evidence yesterday in connection with their
client's case to Central Jakarta District Court.

Lawyers Gunawan Tjahjadi and Pius Soi presented a list
containing 13 items to the court which will be used to support
their client's arguments in her lawsuit.

Their client, Marliana Tanadi, filed a lawsuit requesting more
than Rp 1 billion (US$435,000) against Dr. Henk Kartadinata and
Husada Hospital, accusing the doctor of carelessly leaving a
three-centimeter drill bit lodged in her left arm while she
underwent an operation on her broken arm at Husada Hospital in
May.

She claimed that the doctor's alleged carelessness had
rendered her left hand useless.

The pieces of evidence handed over by Marliana's lawyers to
the court yesterday included four reproductions of four X-ray
pictures of the plaintiff's broken left arm, one taken before the
operation and three after.

Marliana, who lives in Pademangan, North Jakarta, broke her
left arm on May 5, 1996 when she fell down after stepping on a
wet mop cloth. She was rushed to Husada Hospital on Jl. Mangga
Besar Raya in Central Jakarta. She was X-rayed and operated on
the following day by Henk, who inserted a pin in the bone of her
broken arm to aid its healing.

She was allowed to go home three days later. She was only
required to receive treatment as an out-patient. A few days
later, however, her left arm became swollen and painful. She
returned to the hospital. Henk was reportedly surprised and
suggested another operation to adjust the position of the pin.

However, during treatment, her arm became even worse when it
began bleeding in the area of the surgery stitches.

Because of the worsening condition, Marliana was then taken to
another hospital, Setia Mitra, where Dr. Soelarto Reksoprodjo
found the drill bit lodged in the bone of her left arm.

In her lawsuit, Marliana, 45, also accused Henk of having
neglected his responsibility to tell her or her family about the
drill bit.

However, the defendants denied the accusation. They were
represented by Purbadi Hardjoprajitno.

In his reply to the plaintiff's complaint, Purbadi argued that
the hospital had gone through all the standard procedures
required in treating patients, which included informing patients
by showing them X-ray pictures taken earlier.

In her lawsuit, Marliana urged the court to order Henk and the
hospital to pay for the material and immaterial losses she has
suffered. She also urged the court to ban Henk from medical
practice while the trial was in progress.

She also requested the court to order the Jakarta chapter of
the Indonesian Medical Association, one of the parties being
sued, to dismiss Henk from the association.

However, in its reply to the plaintiff's lawsuit, the
association, represented by Poppy Gunawarman, called the lawsuit
incomplete because it did not include the Ministry of Health as
one of the parties to be sued.

Poppy argued that the plaintiff should have included the
ministry, because it was the ministry who issued doctors licenses
and thus had the power to suspend doctors from medical practice.

Presiding Judge Gatam Taridi adjourned the trial until Sept.
30. (26)