Jayalalithaa death: Apollo Hospital pinpoints errors in recording medical terms, seeks examination of records by probe panel

Chennai: The Apollo Hospital on Friday demanded constitution of a medical board comprising doctors and medical professionals to examine the medical records of late former Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa. In an affidavit filed to the A Arumugasamy Commission, the hospital raised the demand citing that errors crept in due to the inability of the typist to comprehend and type correct medical terms. Apollo Hospital further said that words like ‘intubation’ were recorded as ‘incubation’ and such fatal errors to the commission’s understanding of facts about her treatment repeatedly appeared. [caption id=“attachment_4422429” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Jayalalithaa. Reuters[/caption] Earlier in the day, the commission, that is probing Jayalalithaa’s death, summoned London-based intensivist Dr Richard Beale and is expected to appear before the panel through video-conferencing on 9 January. State health minister C Vijayabaskar and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam have also been summoned to appear before the commission on 7 and 8 January, respectively, for the purpose of the enquiry into the death of the former chief minister. Lok Sabha speaker M Thambidurai has also been asked to appear before the probe panel on 11 January. The commission was given an additional four months by the Edappadi K Palaniswami-led Tamil Nadu government in October this year, after extending its tenure twice earlier — in June and December last year. In September last year, Justice Arumughaswamy was appointed to head the probe into the death of Jayalalithaa. Popularly known as ‘Amma’, Jayalalithaa was taken to Chennai’s Apollo hospital on 22 September, 2017, and treated in the hospital for 75 days before she breathed her last on 5 December. Following her death, allegations of foul play began to do the rounds and state forest minister Dindigul Sreenivasan even claimed that all cabinet ministers had misled the people about hospitalisation and death of the AIADMK supremo.